intrepidly wrong

Pushkinskyii Shopping Mall, Kursk- Shopping Heaven!

2009-01-08T07:10:00.000-08:00

So there's this new shopping mall that opened up in Kursk not too long ago, it kinds functions as the hang out spot for the young nowadays. I myself am not someone who indulge in his capitalistic inclination, so I don't go there to 'hang' except when absolutely necessary.

Anyway, here I present you, Pushkinskaja Shopping Mall:

Scene 1. The case of Frosty- the patriotic snow man.

Scene 2. The case of the hanging contraceptives, I meant, ornaments.

Hanging from the ceiling of the shopping mall are beautiful decorations, boughs of holly, stars, moons and angles. But from the bottom looking up, you go, what is that? Is that a bird? Is that a plane? No that's _______ (fill in the blanks with what you think you see, be creative!).

Scene 3. The case of Tina Fey- the wonder woman!

Seen in a prominent corner of the shopping mall, on display in a shop, selling spectacles.

Wow! Now Tina Fey can add 'spokesmodel for a lower-end Russian-brand spectacle company' to her long list of accomplishments (which already includes actress, comedian, screen writer, producer, mother, etc). Super Woman indeed!

In case you're interested, this is also a picture I took during my day out here in Kursk. Seen in a billboard advertisement:
Translation: Bowling, for students! Pay 50% less!

Christmas Charity Concert, Kursk: Part Deux A Full Report

2008-12-28T13:07:00.000-08:00

Christmas Charity Concert, Kursk: Part Deux

After 2 long months of our charity drive, we ended up raising 24, 300 rubles! That was a vast improvement from last year! In fact we raised 5 times the amount that we did last year (Read about the drive last year here). All thanks to the hard work of various students and organizations who helped out in every way imaginable.

Anyway, on December 26th, 1 day after our christmas celebration. We rented 4 buses an brought approximately 6 children from the orphanage at Prospekt Druzhbei 5 to the Concert Hall in our University, where we had a concert just for them.

the children arriving in the concert hall

the crowd in attendance

So the event started at 3pm, and as was the case last year, I was the MC of the day.

me emceeing po-russki (in Russian)

During the concert we attempted to portray to the children the different aspects and different cultures of the students studying in the University, and so we invited students from different nationalities to prepare some performances which might be eye-opening to the children.

The performances included
1. Dragon 9, a pretty established band performed a christmas song, 'Carol of the Bells' and 'Yue Ya Wan' or Moonlight Creek, a song made famous by F.I.R.

2. I gave the children a simple geography test, and invited some children onstage to point out some countries on the map, all of whom received a pack of chocolate as a gift.

3. A stunning performance performed by a Sri Lankan student and a Malaysian student, the Pharaoh and Isis Phoenix dance, equipped with props and costumes to enhance the whole performance.

4. Julian and Andrea, these two Brazilian friends of mine, prepared this slide show presentation of Brazil, showing different pictures depicting the country, buildings, cities, popular monuments, food, people, etc.

5. Lana and Tarsis, another two Brazilian friends, teamed up with Jason, Diana and Mex to perform a musical rendition of the Josh Groban's song, 'You Raise Me Up'.

6. Shola, a Nigerian girl, prepared a slide show presentation of Nigeria, also with pictures depicting different aspects of the life of a Nigerian.

7. 3 Nigerian girl then performed a cultural dance to the song 'the Miracle song'.

8. We had an interactive game with the children. I introduced the children to our own Kung-fu Master 'Bruce Lee'. As usual, the children were all enthusiastic to see another Kung-fu performance. At first I asked the children to sit patiently while I call onstage our Kung-fu master. I hollered out, 'oooooooooohhhhh!!!!' 'Oooooooooooh!!' At which point the background music played, 'Everybody goes Kungfu fighting!' That was when Jason burst onto stage to wow the crowd. The children were laughing the whole time.

'I AM BRUCE LEE' huffs Jason

We invited 4 children onstage, and as Jason shows some Kung fu moves, the children were asked to follow after. It was hilarious! The whole audience were practically on stitches watching the children perform. But anyway, I did explain in Russian, 'you need to promise me that you won't be fighting with other children, understand that this is only a game!' I didn't want any fights to break out because of this!

9. Jason, Qi Jie, Jack, Ming and a junior, Ashton (who received Shao Lin Kung-fu training) went onstage to give an awesome Martial Arts performace to the thunderous applause of the children.

10. Janeth, a Sri Lankan student, went onstage to present a slide presentation on Sri Lanka.

11. Sandun, my neighbour, performed the Candle Crown dance.

12. An 8 minute movie clip on Malaysia and its various cultures, traditions, ways of life and so forth.

13. Abigail choreographed a dance routine to 'All That Jazz' from the musical 'Chicago'. It was a very well choreographed performance with plenty of cheeky and entertaining moments, enough to keep the children clapping the whole way through.

14. A tutor working in the orphanage, Mdm. Elena Vladimirovna, took the stage to present the next few performance, the first, a girl singing a Russian children song.

15. Her sister accompanied her onstage to perform another singing performance.

16. 4 boys appeared onstage for, of all things, a break dance performance. I must admit at this point, I was screaming so loud cheering them on! You should see the video clip of their performance. They did things I thought only profesionals could do, two boys could run a short distance then propel himself skyward, do a 360 spin and land squarely on his feet! One boy did a headstand, another handstand. Then at one point, 2 guys hoisted 2 of his friends into the air, at which point the both of them did another 360 spin at least 6 feet in the air!!! My jaws dropped at this point! And all of them have been 12 year old! One I thought looked maybe 8, 9!

17. Another singing performance from one of the elder girls.

18. GAME TIME! We asked for 7 children from the crowd to pair up with 7 of our foreign students.

Each team are given a piece of newspaper. At first, the music starts (I like to move it move it! from Madagascar) at which point you and your partner must dance. Then I yell 'STOP!' at which point the music stops and immediately the countdown begins from 10 to 0. During this time you must fold the newspaper in half and by 0, both of you must return to the newspaper. The team that fails to do that loses.

Anyway, pictures are worth a million words so just check out the following pictures for yourself.

19. The last surprise of the day is Santa Claus and the Snow Maiden (the Russian version of Santarina, the Snow Maiden is the Russian Santa Claus' granddaughter) who came on stage to distribute gifts to the children, packets of candies and confectionaries and a gift package of 2 exercise books, pencils, a 6pcs colouring pencil, an eraser, a ruler and a pencil sharpener.

Following which we invited the representatives from the orphanage onstage to receive the gifts that we prepared for the children.

20. We invited the Children onstage to accompany the Christmas carolers during the finale.

The concert lasted 2 hours. And at the end, the bus came back and picked them up to send them back to the orphanage.

As we were lifting boxes of gifts into the buses, the children were thanking us profusely and wishing us Happy New Year. You kind of feel this sense of satisfaction, that your goal, after 2 long months, was reached.

Also, these children are the MOST polite, kind children I have encountered. Before the concert I had the chance to speak to a few of them and you should have seen the earnest in their eyes as they reply you. Then, after the concert ended, I've heard of two stories where my friends were saying- those children who won chocolates during the events, when they left stage, they didn't hesitate to share their prize with their friends. In fact one boy broke his bar of chocolate immediately, took only ONE piece, and then distributed the rest to all of his friends. Stories like these are the ones that really break your heart into pieces...

Anyway, I really have to thank everyone who was involved in the success of the concert, from the performers (some like Jason, who performed FOUR times in 2 hours, Abigail, Sandun and Diana who choreographed dances or had to write musical score not once but TWICE, some like Lana, the Brazilian girl who had exam on the day but attended anyway, all of those who never hesitated in performing and SO MANY MORE it will probably take me hours to list them out), the also those who helped out in the background with distributing gifts, taking care of the PA system, decoration, backstage crews, ushers, Photographer, Video Cameraman and many many more.

Just thank you very very very much!

Anyway, also not to mention those who helped out during the two month long charity drive. I know this will sound corny, but this is the absolute truth- I kind of felt a sense of pride that the students who helped out came from all different walks of lives, from different religious and racial background, and did this selflessly to achieve one goal- to give the children a memorable experience. This drive really wouldn't have been such a great success if it wasn't for each and every single one of them.

Barbecued Chicken Dumpling

Jane's Haircut Service

Handmade Christmas Cards and Friendship Trinkets

Chicken Dumpling

Personalized mobile phone pouches

Fried Chicken Wings

Indian flat bread and Malaysian Fragrant Rice

Our Stall during a recent Malaysian Student Food Fest

At the end of the drive, we raised a total of 24, 300 rubles. And we stayed true to our promise- every single cent from the money raised were spent ENTIRELY on the children. We didn't even use up a single cent for the decorations, etc!

1. Transport to and from the orphanage

2. A packet of juice and a packet of Russian snacks for each of the children

3. Presents - 11 bars of chocolate and 2 gift packets to the winners of some of the interactive events during the game

4. A wrapped present of 2 exercise books, pencils, an eraser, a ruler, a pencil sharpener and a box of 6pcs colour pencil for each of the children

5. Candies and confectioneries for each of the children

6. Toys for the girls
Playsets, make up kits, dolls

7. Sport equipments and toys for the boys
Footballs, volleyball, table tennis rackets and ping pong balls, kites, badminton rackets and shuttlecocks.

8. Games and Activities for both boys and girls
Frisbees, Snow/Sand scoops, Puzzles, Bowling ball set, chess sets, Monopoly (Manager) game set

9. Books catering to children of all ages

10. Diapers
Diapers of different sizes for the toddler and infant orphanage from Ulitsa Puchkovka, 38

I would like to end this report by referring all of you to this organization that I chanced upon while researching about Russian orphanages. Click here- http://www.invisible-children.org/english/ to find out more information. Basically it is an organization that seeks for mentors through a penpal/correspondence for the children in the different orphanages in Russia.

Most of the children 'graduate' (in actuality, they just simply have to leave when they reach a certain age) from the orphanage, some of them will turn to drugs, some to illegal things, some commit suicide, some will commit crime and get themselves into jail just so they have a place to spend the night and have their meals taken cared for. By providing the children with mentors, they get to learn from a figure, who knows them and cares for them and provide them with the undivided attention that they deserve.

Click on the following link to read about the goal for this organization. http://www.invisible-children.org/english/2slova.html

I personally signed up immediately after the concert, and now have a mentored boy who lives in the orphanage here in Kursk. It really doesn't take a lot out of you. Those who are interested please contact them by sending an email to this address.

E-mail: kinderhilfe@gmail.com

ICQ: 490-002-883

Also, the children speak only in Russian, so if you do not speak Russian, if possible, try to get someone to translate on your behalf.

That's all for now, ciao!

===End of Christmas Charity Drive: Part Deux===

Update Update Update

2008-12-20T15:08:00.000-08:00

I probably should apologize for the long absence, no? I did mention on several occasions that I'm pretty erratic, in fact my attention span might be slightly longer than that of a China-made electrical appliance.

Anyway, some updates you should probably know about me:

Total...
Weight lost- approximately 10kg
Number of hair lost- Uncountable
Number of Hook-ups- 0
Number of Break-ups- 0
Number of times I thought, 'Lord, I'm bored out of my wits!'- 3, 4
46, 219 times
Number of Charity Drives I helped launch- 1

Speaking of which, this is the ad campaign to the Christmas Charity Drive: Part Deux that I designed (inspired by Heroes, lol!). Click on it to enlarge.

Part IV Tahun Meliwat Malaysia- New Revolutionary Method in Bowling

2008-08-26T12:52:00.000-07:00

Congratulations on Anwar Ibrahim's victory at the by-election. I'm a little lazy with posting up new posts, plus I'm leaving to Russia already tomorrow afternoon, but before that, let me leave you with this clip-

A New Revolutionary Way at Bowling, clip shot at Ipoh, Perak, while I was out Bowling with Benny and Bernard

Malaysia's Manly Next Top Model

2008-08-15T05:39:00.000-07:00

Disclaimer: Some of my friends would probably KILL me for posting some of these pictures... But where is the fun in life if you don't get death threats every now and then right? Heehee!

The latest season of Malaysia's Manly Next Top Model sees the final 4 contestants battling it out, catching shots after shots in the beautiful, historical town of Malacca.

The Portfolio
1. The final 4 contestant shooting for the cover for backstreet boys' latest album.

2. Yours truly was eliminated first owing to his premature receding hairline issues (not depicted here thanks to the fedora hat).

3. The final 3 now goes head to head to win the prestigious title.

4. An attempt to recreate the Spanish Steps, albeit the shorter version.

5. Blooper- A duck flew by just as this shot was taken.

6. Bernard the Boring was eliminated next. Judges commented on how his poses were as stony and flat as the stone slabs behind him. Muahahha!

7. Ming attempts the 'Blue Steel' pose.

8. Benny tries 'Magnum' the look that saved the life of Malaysian Prime Minister in Zoolander.

9. Ming refuses to back down, flexing his manly mounds.

10. Benny double backs and uses the smiling-guy-next-door approach.

11. In one final attempt, Ming channeled the spirit of Bruce Lee.

At the end, 2 persons stand in front of me, but I only have one picture in my hands. This picture represents the one who will become Malaysia's Manly Next Top Model.

And the winner is...

Ming

~No trees or ducks were harmed during the photoshoot~

Part II- Malacca

2008-08-14T07:38:00.000-07:00

Malacca is a town located 2.5 hours away from Kuala Lumpur. It is known as the historical state of Malaysia, being the place where essentially the sultanate of Malaysia began. As one point in time, it was one of the busiest port in this region, connecting the east with the west, not unlike how Singapore and Hong Kong is at the moment. Having being colonized by Dutch and Portugese, and been visited by the Chinese in the olden days, the buildings in Malacca can be seen as having influenced by all these different cultures.

Anyway, we supposedly should have left by early morning, supposedly 8am. But by the time we woke up, dilly-dallied around, showered and left, the clock pointed 10am.

The journey took 2.5 hours. Having skipped breakfast, upon arrival, we immediately dashed to this infamous restaurant. Ask around and everyone will tell you-

The infamous A' Famosa Chicken Rice Balls Restaurant

Anyway, we have friends studying with us over there in Kursk who has told us of this dish before. And having never really seen it with my own eyes, there were many a heated discussion on whether it should really be named as 'Chicken Rice Balls' or 'Chicken Ball Rice'. Because in both of this instances, they can mean different things. Chicken Rice ball would imply that you'll be served with rice balls together with chicken. Whilst Chicken ball rice means that you'll have rice served with Chicken balls (whatever that means?!?!).

Alas it seems the former holds true. You're served rice balls with chicken. We ordered the original rice balls and glutinous rice balls, just to try it out. Everyone visiting Malacca should give it a try.

Next up, we took out time walking along Jonker street, this area in Malacca known for its well preserved shop houses.
A richshaw ching-a-chinging by
If it weren't for the Malaysian flags, would you have mistaken this sight for just another canal somewhere in Amsterdam?

As of July this year, Malacca has been listed as a prominent World Heritage Site of UNESCO.

Some of the highlights of Malacca include-
A row of shophouses famously knowned as Hung Uk, or 'Red Houses'

St Paul's Church, from where you can catch a bird's eye view of the Malacca city

Studhuys Square with a fountain

Christ Church, Malacca, constructed in the 1700's

Church of St Francis Xavier

And A' Famosa fort, built hundreds of years ago by the Portugese. Now it's a site that's visited by millions of travellers.

If you do visit Malacca, there's another delicacy you must try. Cendols are popular in Malaysia. They are basically a dessert consisting of shaved ice served with boiled red beans, green starched noodles, enjoyed together with flavourings like coconut milk and palm sugar. In Malacca, though, you can enjoy a different variety of cendol, aptly named 'Durian' cendol, it is served with Durian flavouring.
Many people have commented on how strong and pungent Durian smells, to the point where it is overbearing. However, true to the saying a man's trash is another's treasure, true-blooded Malaysians like me can't live without it.

We had our durian cendol at this shop, which emits this old-school feel. And the most special thing about this is the tables used are actually parts of an old sewing machine.

Let's ask our experts on their take on the Durian cendol
(Benny takes a mouthful)
Hrm... Not bad at all, not bad at all...
Ming was more generous with the review- thumbs up!

While asking for directions, we had an interesting encounter with this lady at the petrol station there. Before we knew it, we had converse with her for the past hour about all things including our studies in Russia, our career choices, her life as a mother, et cetera et cetera.

One thing about Malacca though, having being enlisted as a city in the UNESCO list, I would have thought that the locals would be a little more... polite? A little more tourist-friendly, maybe? As I was about to cross this road towards the Studhuys square, as there were no pedestrian traffic light, I was waiting for the streams of cars to stop before crossing over. When I saw what seemed like a good chance for me to cross, not knowing much, I took my time walking across. Suddenly from about a few miles off I can see a car coming. It was speeding, speeding and before I know it, I had to leap across in order not to be knocked down. And the driver was what seemed like a middle aged woman! Would it have been that difficult to slow down your car to let a tourist cross the road?

But anyway, all too soon, it was time to ciao. All and all I felt it was a worthwhile travel. After all being a short distance away from Kuala Lumpur, I would recommend a trip to those planning to visit Malaysia.

The journey back.

Tahun Meliwat Malaysia 2008: Part I

2008-08-13T04:19:00.000-07:00

Disclaimer: Anyone who knows me know one of the biggest passion (if not THE single biggest passion) in my life is travelling. And while others splurge and indulge in theirs, I do mine a little unorthodoxly. Granted I squeeze every penny's worth, I still try to maximize fun everyway I can.
This is the series of adventure during my trip around Peninsular Malaysia during this past 3rd- 13th August. Enjoy, woo-hoo!

All right, for those of you who do not live in Malaysia and do not speak Malay, the word 'meliwat' means sodomizing, which is actually a play on the word melawat, which means visiting or touring. Seeing the state in which my beloved country is in at the moment (what's with the politics and the sex scandals and et cetera...) I deem it fit to name my 10 days journey 'Tahun Meliwat Malaysia 2008'.

DAY 1

The first picture I captured using my newly bought Sony Cyber Shot digital camera.

The crowd at PC Fair, KLCC

The greatest sales tactic known to mankind- have chicks distribute flyers for your company in revealing clothes, push-up bra and heavily made-up face. You'll fall for it every time.
In front of the Petronas Twin Towers, our national monument.

Us Malaysians and our 'yam cha' habit
Benny
Ming and Bernard having a hearty chat

As we were doing our shopping around Mid-Valley, there was this ruckus and what seems like a crowd of little children.
It was some promotional works done for the High School Musical Ice Tour here in Malaysia.
I don't know if other people see it the same way as I do, but franchises such as High School Musical, Hannah Montana and others are really just capitalizing, and using children as fodder for profit. Not really the best people to reap a profit from.
Having said that, me and Ming left the shopping mall that night, all the while humming to the tunes of 'What time is it? Summertime. Anticipation!' Damn those catchy High School Musical tunes!

Flaming Platter from Manhattan Fish Market for dinner
Liar liar pants on fire!

We ended the night at Halo Cafe, Sunway branch
Met up with Kazakh friends, Shopan and her boyfriend, Ira, with whom we chatted in Russian with.

Photohunt: Unique/ Funny Signs

2008-04-25T12:21:00.000-07:00

This is a sign I came accross in Auschwitz, Poland, at the etrance of the concentration camp of Auschwitz I, translated literally into: "work shall set you free/will free you".

No doubt, this is a paradox, since almost none of the people who saw and read this sign were ever freed.

Tolko U Nas V Rossii Part 2 (Только У Нас В России 2-ая Часть)

2008-04-13T11:52:00.000-07:00

Seen in an ad for a local tour agency:

Let's zoom in closer for a look at what should be the catchphrase of the millenium:

Woo-hoo!

Friday~

2008-04-11T09:23:00.000-07:00

Spent the morning in the Obstetrics and Gynaecological hospital. Here we are, me and my groupmates spending some time while waiting for our teacher to arrive.

Every single person here, with only the exception of ONE, are bloggers. Can you believe that? That's got the be the highest density of bloggers that you can have fitted into one room!

Here are the hardworking ones, a rare moment captured on film. Haha!

From outside the classroom window, on the opposite wing of the building, the magnified picture of this room is an operation theatre. Yes, you're right, you're looking at an open window and what looks like a 19th Century air-conditioner. Yesterday we were just here watching a hysterectomy done with AN OPEN WINDOW!

When classes ended at 12.30, I took a bus and rode on to this stadium, for the second part of Kursk Student SpringFest or 'Фестиваль Студентическая Весна'. This time, it's the battle of the singers. A few of our students from Malaysia represented our university in this competition, one of which was featured in our Chinese New Year Concert. The vice dean was very impressed with their performance and handpicked them to represent our university in this competition.

You can sample a clip of their performance here:

A few performances that were showcased included:
A group of girls I like to call the Medieval Maidens, come fully equipped with dresses fit for the queens (or milkmaids...) of the medieval ages.

Bodilicious Russian chicks... and the one standing the most right happens to be at least 50 years old!

Here is what Russia has to offer for their answer to the Spice Girls phenomenon. From left to right (with the help of your imagination)- Scary, Baby, Posh, Ginger and Sporty.

After the last of our students performed (Chee Siong and Mex with their solo pieces), we took off!

During the bus ride home this one Russian kid sat next to me. Out of sheer boredom, I started playing 'Peek a boo' with him, squinting one eye, flicking out a tongue, roll my eyes a little, shake my head left and right real fast. And the kid was very much entertained.

Here Diana captured this picture while I was doing my bout of Peak a boo.

And here he's laughing at my silly antics. Really cute, right?

When we got off the bus stop, lo and behold we saw this huge graffiti on the road leading up to the Kursk Philharmonic Orchestra Concert Hall.

I asked this guy here what was he painting on the road, he explained that this abstract art commemorates the starting of the Jazz festival that was to kick start in Kursk starting today. What you see here are at first the piano, which slowly evolves into an abstract form of art, signifying (in his words) the freedom of expression of the art. Quite a nice piece, I must say.

Already my previous post mentioned about some International Musician are coming from the States to perform here in Kursk(Grammy nominated Dave Koz and his friends). I found out today that tonight, the JazzFest kicks off with another performance by International Jazz musicians Peter Swerd, a Swiss guitarist, Steve Kershow, an English playing the bass and Nikolay Vinskevich, a Russian playing the saxophone.

All of a sudden Kursk seems to be the most happening place to be in right about now.

Odd...

Deja Vu

2008-04-09T11:41:00.000-07:00

You know how somedays everything can seem like a deja vu? Like as though you're repeating a page of your history? Well, today definitely seemed like it.

On the journey to Ming's place this evening, I came across this poster- a Jazz Rock concert, featuring acts William Kennedy, Jeff Lorber and Dave Koz from the United States and Russian musician Sergei Chipenko, in a trans-atlantic jazz performance. Frequent readers of my blog would know how BORING our lives here in Kursk are, so knowing that some international acts are performing in this town here, a 6 time grammy award nominated artist no less (Dave Koz), me and my friends are jumping with the idea of attending the concert, of course.

But what striked me as familiar was this flyer here.

If you read my earlier post here titled 'Political Frenzy', you'd realize that it's the flyer of the SAME COMPANY that was pasted on another poster, this time, on a poster for a clown show...

Anyway, the weather was nice, sun was out, and a walk through a park is exactly what is needed. It was spring, yes, and yet with these fallen leaves here, you might even mistake it for autumn.

Then I saw these parents and their children out Which gave me another flashback to this post I did, titled 'Autumn in Kursk', with a similiar view.

A grandpa was also bringing his pet dog out for a walk...

Not unlike a picture I snapped of an old grandpa with his pet out for a walk a few months back.

So the menu for the night are Nasi lemak- savoury rice with fried chicken and sliced cucumber served with sambal.

A little reminiscence of a dinner he did a while back in this post, titled 'The Great Escape'.

For drinks, we had 7up which Ming spiked with his vodka.

For dessert, I made Lek Tau Suan with Yew Char Kuay, a traditional chinese dessert.

Photohunt: Glass

2008-04-07T13:40:00.000-07:00

(This is the first part of a another 2 part picture series, Part 2 of my 'glass' photohunt theme can be found here)

I seem to have a knack for being one of the last ones when it comes to Photohunt assignments... But anyway, people say that it's always better late than never, right?

This week, for 'glass' theme, I pay homage to the millions of lives who fell victim to the Pol Pot and his Khmer Rouge regime in Cambodia. As you read in my previous posts (here and here) you'll have realized that I visited Cambodia last year in August during my summer holiday. What was supposed to be relaxing holiday turned out to be an eye-opening experience for me. Cambodia as a country is rich with culture and history and the people there are as courteous as they are kind.

Of course, in order to really understand a country you need to dwelve into the country's history, including the past.

As you all know, in the not to distant history, Cambodia was under a communistic regime held by the world famous dictator, Pol Pot, who estimated to have killed at least 13 Million lives, including Cambodians and foreigners alike.

This is a picture taken in the Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. What used to be a school, was transformed overnight into this disgusting prison surrounded by barbed wires. This here is a classroom, now lined up with rows of rows of nameless faces, the victims of Khmer Rouge. All that remains now are these pictures of them, behind these glass frames.

As I left the museum that day, I said a silent prayer to those people and prayed that never again will these events occur.

Dilemma of a medical student

2008-04-02T15:43:00.001-07:00

I'm not sure about medical students elsewhere in the world, but living here and studying here in Russia, I sometimes still cannot get over the fact of how sometimes you can feel the weirdest connections and the weirdest bonds with the unlikeliest of people.

Especially now that I'm in my 5th year, every week we have a different rotation, covering a specific topic. And every week we're given a patient with whom we have to do interviews, clerking, jot down some histories, listen to stories of his/her lives, etc. And more than once, during these sessions, I feel myself connecting with some of my patients on a personal level.

I think the one that hit me the worst was probably 1 or 2 years ago during Internal Medicine, I was given a patient, whom over the course of the next week, I practically had to visit her every single day. Her story was a compelling one, a 65 year old grandmother living alone in a small hut (she explained so much to me) spending her days in the summer planting potatoes and cabbages. When I asked, 'where are your children?' Her reply was a prompt 'I don't know'.

As heart-wrenching as it was, I tried my best not to be emotional about the whole situation. She could barely walk and she had to carry on her life alone, growing enough produce to support her own living. Over the course of the next few days, I brought some fruits for her (which I sneaked to her after class ended- none of my group mates knew about this until this day) and spent some extra time talking to her after class, maybe to help alleviate some loneliness. And she was a very lovely lady too. Very warm and very interested in this bespectacled medical student who came from a totally different world from her old self. She left me with an advice, 'study hard and be good'.

Always when these situations happen, you try to resist yourself from being pulled into, what I call, the 'emotional quicksand'. When you get emotionally attached to a patient, your judgement would be clouded and you are jeopardizing your professionalism. You want to do your best for the patient but when you're in that situation, you simply can't.

So next time when you're in a hospital and come across doctor or two who seems a little cold, maybe a little bit harsh. Just know that there might be a reason behind it.

Photohunt: High

2008-04-01T12:45:00.000-07:00

My other entry of this week's theme here.

Another late entry.

This time my picture for 'High' comes from Cambodia, a country like no other. Here are me and my friends standing at the peak of Angkor Wat, what some people said should have been rightfully awarded one of the 'Seven Wonders of the World' title.

Here you can see the Angkor Wat being reflected on the lake of mirrors.

But in order to reach to the top of temple, you need to embark on a mini adventure. The time we arrived there, the rain had just poured. The steps were as steep as they were wet.

When I said 'rain', I really meant a torrential storm! Luckily we came prepared.

But when we arrived at the peak, the view of Angkor with the lush greeneries right after the rain, just as the sun set over Cambodia was a sight to behold.

Kursk Student SpringFest!

2008-03-29T00:06:00.000-07:00

Last Tuesday, I travelled about half an hour from the city centre to turn up and support some of our Malaysian students here in Kursk, who took part in this 'Student SpringFest Talent Competition' or 'Фестиваль Студентическая Весна'.

If you remembered, I mentioned here during this Chinese New Year Concert that we had in Kursk- the Vice Dean of Foreign Relations who attended the event was very impressed with some of the performances, particularly with the 3-member girl band (comprising of Ariel, Pek Jinn and Audrey) and the newly formed 9-piece Musical Orchestra/Band Dragon 9. She then invited them to the said talent competition, where (apparently) the best talents from all over the city gather to showcase their singing and musical capabilities.

I thought I was in for maybe something like American Idol- one marvel of a singing performance followed by another, but BOY was I way wrong!

The whole 5 hours I sat there, you would have thought I was attending a Heavy Metal, Head-Banging, Pot_and-Pans-a-Clanging, Hardcore Rock n' Roll Concert. Aside from the students from our University and maybe one other act, the rest of performances that day were one and the same- hard rocking, heavy metal performances. There were quite a few surprising talents though in Kursk, it seems. One band for example, blew me away, a 3-piece band that named themselves 'Still', which played a music which I can only describe as alternative rock. Kind of something like the band Coldplay or Incubus would play. In fact, until this day (3 days after the concert) I still have their music ringing in my head.

But I can tell you one thing, the students of our University did particularly well, I arrived just as Ariel, Pek Jinn and Audrey took the stage to perform Lydia, the Taiwanese Hit Song made popular by F.I.R.

Here's a clip of them performing on the night of the Chinese New Year Concert.

They were then followed by Dragon 9, who performed 'Qi Ji' or miracle.

Here's the clip of them performing during the night of Chinese New Year.

While here's the clip of them performing 'Blue Dragon', the OST of Team Medical Dragon, a popular Japanese Medical series, during the SpringFest.

It may be biased, but in my honest opinion, our students were just flat out the best during the competition. Some of the other acts were also rather impressive, and then there were those who were scary to witness... There was this one act, for example, what I can only describe as 'Goth-rock'? In full gothic attires, the girls with dark, black make up and the men with leather jackets or in one case- fish nets and a leather corset! One other band named 'One Second to Death' was a typical Kurt Cobain era teenage angst and anger filled band, only thing was they are way past their teens... In fact they were University students...

Alas, even though me and Ming wanted to stay till the end of the concert, there was only so much rock n' roll that you can take. I left at 6.30pm with a headache, a ringing ear drum and feeling roughly like I've been hit by a train...

But like I predicted, our students not only won the competition, they clean-sweeped the top spots! And mind you there were 30 performances that day! Congratulations to the winners!

First Place- Dragon 9
Second Place- Hemoglobin (A Russian band from our university, winners of the same competition the previous year)
Third Place- Ariel, Pek Jinn, Audrey

Photohunt: Metal

2008-03-24T15:20:00.000-07:00

The Europe Trip that I embarked on a few months ago, I must admit, was a very enlightening one for me. As someone who was raised in Asia, we did learn about the atrocities carried out by the Nazi and Japanese empire during the world war II, but somehow emphasis was put on the Asian side, and only this past year did I really understand the meaning of the Nazi Holocaust during the war.

This is the first of the two part series of pictures for this week's photohunt, titled metal. (Part 2 here)

This picture was taken in Auschwitz, Poland, where the Nazi German Concentration camp was built. This structure here can be found on a wall in which barbed wire surrounded.

As you can only imagine, barbed wire surrounded the whole concentration camp, locking people inside. Inside this camp hundreds to thousands of prisoners were kept at any one time. The worst thing was that there was an incinerator also in the premise, where prisoners are said to be whisked off to be killed.

Pictures like this should serve as a reminder of what mistakes people have done in the past, and what lesson we can take from it.

Psalm 23: Verses 1- 6

2008-03-23T12:16:00.000-07:00

Psalm 23
1 The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.
2 He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.
3 He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake.
4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.
5 Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.
6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever.1

My condolences to Eddy and his family members, who lost his father last Thursday. Our thoughts and prayers are with him during this difficult time.

Chinese New Year Concert 2008- Kursk, Russia

2008-03-19T16:15:00.000-07:00

I guess I should explain my abscence from the blogging world. Over here in Kursk, even though Chinese New Year celebration ended about half a month ago, a group of us Chinese students felt it was our responsibility to come together and organize a concert. It has been 3 years since the previous one was held and of course, the stakes are higher just as the task at hand would be as much coarser and tougher.

And ever since November, I've been a part of this committee, hell bent on throwing together a concert that would, in a layman's term, kick some ass.

So last Saturday, finally all the bits and pieces fell together in the form of our Chinese New Year Concert 2008.

My responsibility, on top of throwing together a mini Chinatown, was to see that the event ran without a glitch.

Here are some snapshots done of the ChinaTown.

Basically it consists of several 'stalls' which serves to explain different facets of the Chinese culture- there's the Calligraphy Stalls, where you can get your name written in Chinese character; there's the Lion Dance Spectacular, where you can photograph with the Lion Dance Costume, with my tv playing clips of Lion Dance performances; there's the Beijing teahouse, where you can learn how to make chinese tea the traditional way; and then there's the Chopstick shack, teaching you how to use your chopsticks correctly!

The show started off with a lion dance performance by Andrew and Kong, and right from the moment the concert started off, everything went exceedingly well.

Here are some selected highlights of the night,

A 9 piece Chinese Muscial Orchestra, playing a song called 'qi ji' or miracle. I honestly thought that the performance was simply the best that night. And it's also the first time that we showcased such a wide array of talent. Just watch the clip and you'll see what I mean.

Fan Dance, choreographed by Josephine and Ingrid, was a hit also on the night

Lydia, performed by Ariel, Pek Jinn and Audrey, another amazing performance of vocal prowess

Martial Arts performance, by Ming, Nate, Jack, Nate and Qi Jie

Acapella, by GP, a Kenyan, Brian, a Zambian, and Mex, Diana and Richard, Malaysians. The greatest bit was when GP, Brian and Mex sang in mandarin! Amazing!

Bandbros, fronted by Anwar and Alexis, performing a popular mandarin song, 'Kai Bu Liao Ko' made famous by Jay Chow

At the end of the event, I could literally feel a heavy weight lifted off of my chest. But I know all the committee members delivered to their utmost best, and the concert I felt was a huge success. To the point where the Vice dean who attended the concert, told me that this was the best concert yet that she has ever witnessed.

I personally thought that the whole process was a great one, and that I am proud to have been a part of this committee, roughing it out. And Lord knows how bumpy it got at one point or another, but at the end, we delivered.

But of course, I think the stars of the night were those who worked tirelessly around the clock, some having to travel to different hostels to work until somewhere like 10pm, and some who had to miss classes and lectures in order for the concert to take off without a glitch.

The Additional Wonders that Blogging Brings!

2008-03-13T12:39:00.000-07:00

For bloggers like me and my friend, we definitely enjoy having to share our life's experiences and our thoughts with the world. But also, I recently discovered that with blogging, comes the glory of writing blogs for money.

This idea strikes me as interesting. Of course for someone with, say, a power career, a steady job and a steady income, blog advertising and getting paid to blog may not seem attractive, but to students like me and my friends, this is a commodity non of us can pass on.

Amongst all the companies offering blog advertising services, I would highly recommend you bloggers out there to try out Smorty.com. It is not only the most effective tool to increase search engine rankings, also, Smorty provides a fast a secure way getting paid to advertise on blogs. Not only that, fast payments and daily campaigns also make this an opportunity not to missed out on.

Also, once signed into Smorty, you'll realize how easy it is to get caught up in all the hype that is brings. Plus, with a newly released Smorty Blog and Smorty Forum, you can also catch up on the latest news, tips, and discussions about all there is to know about Smorty.

To find out more about Smorty and the wonders it bring, go ahead and visit Smorty by clicking the banner provided below!

Photohunt: Different

2008-03-10T17:54:00.000-07:00

I apologize first and foremost of the disappearing act. Workload's been catching up with me and I finally found some time to upload this post.

Anyway, the Malaysian election ended a couple of days ago. For those who don't know, I am a Malaysian through and through. A multi-cultural nation which I can proudly say I belong to.

This picture is me and my neighbours. Here in the student hostel, 5 rooms share a common living area and a common kitchen, and these here are my neighbours and my best friends. We are all different. We're from different races, different religion, different social background, different parts of the country and the list goes on and on and on. But you could not find a more compatible group of friends. We have parties together, we go to each other when we need help, we have long chit chats, we laugh together and we share together. Deep down, we are all Malaysians, and that's what matters.

Online Craze!

2008-03-02T07:28:00.000-08:00

In this 21st century, it seems that everything goes online. The latest wave to hit the online craze nowadays is online casino. With so many online casino, it is of course, a great relief to know that there's a site like www.pro360.com, which does the best job in online casino reviews.

Also, another special feature of this site is the ranking of Best Online Casinos which ranks all the favourite online casino and games, like roulette, slots, pokers and others. This enables players to choose according to their preference and have a thoroughly enjoyable gaming experience.

For online gaming beginners like me, frat not! You also get Online Gambling Tips and Tips on how to get started through this site. Nothing beats starting off a gambling experience through some prior researching first right? These tips will guarantee to get you ahead in this game!

You may also want to check out other features like the online casino reviews, which give a detailed review on sites according to their structure, web design, gaming varieties and others.

All and all, pro360.com is a wholesome package, worth visiting anytime!

Photohunt: Party

2008-02-29T14:12:00.000-08:00

When I found out that today's topic is 'Party', I thought, hm... no problem there! If you've been reading some of my previous posts you can note that not only am I the party animal, I am one heck of a party planner too.

But what I want to share this week is a party of a different kind. Earlier last month, a group of international students here in Kursk, Russsia organized a party for the orphans here in one of the orphanages. We raised our own fund and bought present, gifts, surprises, games and many, many performances.
Group Photo
You can read about the report on the party in detail, with more pictures and video clips here in my previous post. click here!

The best thing was to see how the children enjoyed themselves as well, singing, laughing, clapping along to the performances, and taking part in the games. Our months of hard work in planning and raising the fund was really worth it.

Here, I took a picture with some of the children there.

Men's Day Dinner- An Expensive, Expensive One...

2008-02-26T12:40:00.000-08:00

Actually, I didn't really even know the significance about Men's day. Knowing me, I'd be happy if there was any reason for us to gather together and cook ourselves a meal. In fact I only knew the meaning of this celebration from reading my friend and fellow blogger, Irise's entry on it.

So here we are, 2 days after Chap Goh Meh (the 15th day of Chinese New Year), finding ourselves in another holiday, what are we to do? Celebrate, of course!

We had much much more planned out for the night, though.

Starting with this Abalone, which my friend Benny brought from Malaysia.

And the Sea cucumber that Choc Ky brought, also from Malaysia.

And this Vacuum-Packed, Pre-cooked Peking Roasted Duck that I brought from Belgrade, Serbia.

Want to go behind the scenes of what would be an expensive, high-class, 5-star dinner?

Benny started off by slicing the Abalone into a few slices.

These are the ingredients needed to prepare the Abalone-chicken stew. Some sliced up chicken breast, the Abalone, of course, and some chinese mushroom, soaked.

As for the sea cucumber, I braised it with sliced pork and some chicken mushroom, with oyster sauce, dark soy sauce and pepper as seasoning.

We also had chinese spring roll, another expensive chinese delicacy. Here you see Sandra helping me out with the rolling of the spring roll.

As for the vege, we had steamed caluli flower and carrot, with razor clams (also I brought from Malaysia).

Chop chop chop! Clang Clang Clang and Voila! Our Men's Day dinner.

Let's see what it costs:
Chicken and abalone stew with chinese mushroom= RM 80/ USD 23.5

Braised Pork with Sea Cucumber with chinese mushroom in soy sauce and oyster sauce gracy= RM 85/ USD 25

Peking Roasted Duck with Gravy, served with slices of fresh Chinese cabbages= RM 75/ USD 22

Chinese Spring Roll= RM 10/ USD 3

Steamed cauli flower with sliced carrot with razor clams= RM 10/ USD 3

Which meant...
Cost of Dinner = RM 260, or USD 77!
The fact that we had Abalone, Roasted Duck, Razor Clams, Spring Rolls and Sea Cucumber all in one night here in Kursk, Russia? = Priceless!

Photohunt: Wooden

2008-02-23T04:28:00.000-08:00

This is a picture of the wooden barracks (through barbed wires) found in the Nazi Concentration Camp in Auschwitz, Poland, where I visited this past winter.

I must say the whole town was enveloped with this gloomy sensation, and it was a pretty dark trip, to see what happened in World War 2.

Prior to this trip, I did some researching about Auschwitz, and posted a question on an online travel forum. Almost immediately I was bombarded by replies, asking me why would anyone even want to visit such a place. Well, first and foremost, I for one do not believe in the concept of Ignorance is bliss. To me, ignorance leads on to stupidity, which later transpires into atrocious montrosity that neither you or me could fathom. And there was a saying amongst the holocause survivors- 'Never Forget'. Which I think is a strong and powerful message. We learn from our mistakes and move forward.

Anyway, hope you guys have a good week photohunting.

Tolko U Nas V Rossii Только У Нас В России

2008-02-19T13:26:00.000-08:00

This is the first among the series of posts which I will be writing, about my love-it-hate-it relationship with this city that I'm currently living in...

I've been trying my best to avoid having to have to blog about this. The truth is, after nearly 6 years living here in Kursk, Russia, I do kind of have a bond with this place. As much as all of us here hate to admit it, I believe we'll all miss this town once we leave it in another year's time.

Just to think that when we first arrived, we were greeted by a very unwelcoming sight- a pure, typical, communistic brick building which we later realized (with a sinking sense of horror!) was to be our hostel. When we arrived in April, 6 years ago, it was already the end of winter, but the cold was still as bad. So dragging our 30kg luggages (packed to the last micro, nano-gram), and having spent 6 hours in transit in a horrible backward airport (Tashken, Uzbekistan), arriving to that sight was disheartening.

The sight inside almost made me want to scamper back home to my family...

The advertisement and brochures had described what I presumed would be a fairly attractive hostel. However, what greeted me and my roommate were peeling wallpaper, 2 sad looking beds, one study table, and another sadder looking cabinet. To top it off, we had to share a toilet and bathroom which looked too poisonous to use.

I ensure you at that moment, my first thought was- I GOT SCAMMED!

Thinking back, there were really a lot of moments which can only be described as bitter-sweet. There were the highs, and of course the lows.

Anyway, to better introduce you to Kursk, Russia, a city situated in Western Russia, very close to the border of Ukraine, you can do some reading up here- in this wikipedia link.

Even though I've always described Kursk as a boring, God-forsaken town (sometimes out of spite, sometimes out of fondness), really you shouldn't take my words for it. The main (some argue is THE ONLY) tourist attraction here is located not too far from the city centre, and really not too far from where my current hostel.

As you approach it, you get to see tanks after tanks lined up, serving as a reminder to the people, of the war which just passed. For your information, it is generally agreed by historians world over that the greatest tank battle in the world took place right here in Kursk, Russia, in a town called Porkhovka. And it was also widely believed that this tank battle in fact was a great turning point in the course of the history during the Second World War. You can read more here in this wikipedia link.

I also notice Russians have a certain fondness towards their-so-called 'eternal flame'. No, not the song, but literally flames which perpetually burn. Non-stop. 24/7. Period. I'd like to think it's because of their pride over the richness of their natural resources like petroleum and natural gas and so forth...

Here you can see an eternal flame, burning with the Kursk Victory Gate in the background.

This here is a picture taken of the Kursk Victory gate, in front of which is a statue of a General who led the Soviet Red Army against the German Front during the Second World War.

This here is a picture of the the upper church of the Trinity Monastery, or at least the remains of what it used to be.

Before the war it used to look something like this-
A magnificient Baroque cathedral, which looked as magnificient as the wikipedia article described it to be.

Too bad that now, only the three-storey belltower remains.

There are more storied to tell about this cathedral but I guess I will just reserve some for my next big 'Tolko U Nas V Rossii' post. Which, by the day, translates into 'You can find it only here in Russia'. Heehee!

Also, before I end this post, I really couldn't resist snapping this picture-
What do you think it looks like? Comment away!

German Hotdogs!

2008-02-17T14:51:00.001-08:00

Ask anyone who's been to Western Europe, to countries like Germany, Austria and others, and they can tell you how distinctively different their sausages and hotdogs are from the ones they sell here in Russia or back home in Malaysia. The texture, the flavour, the taste... they're worlds apart! And you can get them really cheap too!

This time around, a wiser me decided to 'ta pao' (pack home) some sausages from Austria- the last stop of my European trip, and make delicious hotdogs out of them.

Ingredients needed are sausages and buns!

Fry them up in a non-stick pan.

I fried up some diced onions, made some potatoe salad. Also make sure you have chilli sauce, mayonnaise, and also mustard.

This is the end product. It didn't look as pleasing as I hoped it turned out to be, but it was delicious!

Compare it to the one I had in Oslo. Amazing, right? And the lady was kind enough to put 2 kinds of dressings for me, potato salad dressing at one end, and shrimp salad dressing at the other. It was certainly a mouthful!

Photohunt: Free

2008-02-15T13:49:00.000-08:00

When I found out the topic for photohunt this week was 'Free', I Immediately thought of the word Freedom and of its importance.

This past winter holiday during my time in Prague, I was lucky enough to visit the infamous John Lennon wall, which is a wall displaying messages of love and peace. This is an important symbol of freedom, especially drung the Communist regime in Czech Republic not so long ago. After John Lennon's death in the 80's, his fans gathered around this wall and scribbled down messages of love and peace, and slowly it caught on. In days the wall was full of these messages.

Of course, being under a socialist regime this sort of thing cannot be tolerated, so much so that police guards were hired to keep watch on the wall to ensure that nobody does it.

In the end, it was reported that up to thousands of people were jailed for this offense. In fact, there was a huge clash amongst the students and the police over this fight for freedom, which was reported all around the world.

Therefore, I can only appreciate the meaning of freedom more, standing so close to this piece of historical monument. And cannot thank our forefathers enough for their battle for our freedom.

Anyway, like any other persons would, I left my message of peace and freedom on the wall too-

Also, we noticed a cigarette hanging from the lips of the bust of John Lennon. Being the sport that we are, I hoisted Kenny up on my back and we lit the cigarette up for the guy. We thought it was the least we could do for the guy...

*warnings- boxer alert!*

First Day of Class y'all!

2008-02-13T14:49:00.000-08:00

I want to take this opportunity first and foremost to wish everybody Happy Valentine’s Day.

I want to take this opportunity first and foremost to wish everybody Happy Valentine’s Day.

Anyway, my holiday to Europe was really great, and it took me quite awhile to recharge my energy, but I think I’m good and ready to go now.

This week, our classes started with TB rotation. Not too long ago Russia was enshrouded in a poor socioeconomic level and diseases such Pneumonia and TB were very common and almost most definitely fatal. For this reason alone, people tend to build hospitals to treat this disease far out away from the city. And for this reason also… our first week in class meant us having to TREK our way across treacherous, uncharted terrain, SKID our way across icy, snowy paths, HIKE across train treks and bridges, CROSS rivers and JOG through forest paths.

It almost sounds like the tagline to the new Indiana Jones movies.

Well, if you think I was joking, take a look at these pictures.

The journey with us groupmates started off with an early morning hike to the bus stop. It was really slippery, and walking was so much harder since the surface of the newly formed snow was as slippery as a piece of mirror. It kinds of give you a sense like you're skating yourself across a skating rink.

The bus arrived about 20 minutes after our wait.

Picked us up and about another 20 minutes later we arrived at the end stop. Which totally was a shady place. You're surrounded by gravel paths, wooden houses which seemed as though they've endured one winter too much and frankly, the place looked a little scary...

Onwards we walked along this tarred road, which then was crossed by a train rail track. We had either to choose to walk on an untarred walk path, which was as slippery as can be, or to hike along the train track, which was dangerous, since the rail track was still functional and very much in use, and at any moment's notice there may be trains coming from either directions!

As you can see, we chose the easy the rail track.

As we walked on, we could see on both sides little wooden cottages that were in a horrible condition- little farmhouses that otherwise in the summer months, are surrounded by plantation like potatoes and cabbages and different kinds of fruits.

There were even tales from the seniors that once in a while they take a break from their hike and pet the goats other farm animals on the way to the hospital.

However, the most worrying part of the journey was when we came across this bridge.

The bridge was continuous with the rail track, and if a train really did pass by on our way across it... I would really fear for our lives.

Because as you can see, less than 10 feet below us were icy cold water, from the Kursk River...

Me and Eddy were discussing what would happen had a train really chug its way across at the exact same time that we were crossing. He said he would rather lie flat on the tracks in the dead center, while I opted to just jump into the water!

There was a guy there, huddled up in warm blankets and catching fish on top of frozen ice.

After the bridge, the hospital was still NOT in sight!

We still had to hike across mountainous terrain.

And slide down little hills.

In this clip, which Johnny shot, the rest of my groupmates were already at the foot of the little hill, waiting for us. At the risk of falling flat on my ass, I took my time to slide down on my ass first, then walk the rest of the way across. Which was pretty effective!

It almost felt like the picture footages for the journey was enough to film for 2 sequels to an Indiana Jones movie (and then some)!

At long last, we arrived at the said hospital.

Well, the upside to this was that the professor we have for the subject is extremely nice! He's probably 70 years old, speaks very good english, and is obviously very experienced in the subject. And I think we're going to learn a lot this two weeks with him.

Anyway, it only took me typing out this post to realize this- I'm in my 5th year 2nd Semester, which means only 3 more semesters and one and half year more- and I'm graduating. Wow, how exciting!

Photohunt: Heavy

2008-02-12T16:32:00.000-08:00

This is another post loooong overdue. Ever since I arrived back from my trip in Europe, it took me awhile to recharge my batteries to get it running again. But anyways I hope it's not too late to wish everybody a Happy Chinese New Year!

For this theme, there's only one thing I can think of, of course. Heavy meal- that is!

For us Chinese, we have a tradition of having a reunion dinner on the eve of Chinese New Year. This marks the most important day in the life of a Chinese. Family members are to gather together, have dinner together and celebrate together. The niche with studying abroad is, of course, missing out on all these traditions. Instead of celebrating this day with my family, I was in the train on the way back from Moscow to Kursk. So basically miserable and alone...

But then I arrived back in Kursk and made up for it in a big way, a huuuuge dinner with my friends, of course!

If you take a look at the pictures there you can see the dishes that I cooked- braised sea cucumber cooked with leaks and chinese sausages, chicken soup with chinese cabbages and fish bladder (hu pio), Sweet and Sour Pork and Ma po Tofu. I also heated up the vecuum-packed pre-cooked Peking duck served with gravy, and Shoo hao steamed the Red Tilapia and Choc Ky did the mixed vege. It was a looot of food for 6 people, so you can only imagine how heavy it was even for us!

But it was great, I have to admit, that despite being so far from my family, I still got to relive and cherish a part of our culture and tradition in this foreign land. And if you look at all the dishes that we prepared, you have to admit they were pretty hardcore traditional!

Hope you guys have a nice week ahead! Happy Photohunting!

Online casino

2008-02-10T13:27:00.000-08:00

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Photohunt: Narrow

2008-02-01T15:07:00.000-08:00

This is a picture taken in Cesky Krumlov, Czech Republic. The whole town is full of narrow lanes and cobblestone paths, medieval buildings that are hundreds (even thousands of years old).

This picture of me is taken in front of a very narrow lane in the town, searching for directions on the map.

Here's a picture of the town. It is very well preserved. In fact, it is the second most important town which is protected under UNESCO World Heritage Site.

And here was the traditional Czech dinner that we had, roasted duck with cabbage and dumplings... which tasted as good as it looks (and sounds).

Anyway, I'm in Budapest right now, still in my winter break. We went to visit a Thermal Spa just a few hours ago (which was REALLY soothing) then had a very traditional Hungarian Dinner at a Posh restaurant. So I'm practically beaming as I1m typing this at the moment.

Blog update- Part 2 (deux)

2008-01-29T17:35:00.000-08:00

Status: Relaxed... too many days in the capital of Bohemia does that to you
Location: Prague 7, Prague, Ceskz Krumlov
Mood: Slightly sleepy, and should reallz head to bed for tomorrow morning's earlz morning bus ride

I really have to apologize for the state of my blog. Before I left, I updated probably twice of three times a week, now that I'm on holiday... It's hard to maintain it. I do hope you readers come back every once in awhile to check on any updates though.

My next series of pictures consists of shots taken from some of the places that I've been to very recently.

Norway- Land of the Vikings

Our host in Oslo, Martinka

I had 3 shots of this the first night I arrived in Oslo + 2 cups of Vodka

The harbour at Oslo's city centre

Home of the bagels- Krakow, Poland

Me biting on a bagel in glavni rynek, the main town square in Krakow, Poland

Cantonese Noodles in Krakow, Poland (I cooked that!)

Memorial plate in Aushwitz

The barracks housing hundreds of thousands of prisoner of wars at one time

Barbed wire closing the enclosure that is the Aushwitz German Concentration Camp

My wish for taking a picture with an Eastern European hottie came true- at Beerhalle, Katowice, Poland with a Polish hottie (My face gets all red after drinking about only half a cup of that beer. Sad, right?)

Tomas, who visited Kuching last summer, brought us out for dinner and beer in Katowice, Poland.

Pilsner Urquell, quipped as the best beer in the world

Our Czech dinner- stuffed dumplings served with spinach and fresh garden vegetables

My dinner- Potatoe Pancakes with goulash... AMAZING FLAVOUR!

John Lennon wall, which caused thousands of peace-lovers thrown into jail during the USSR regime in Prague

My imprints on the John Lennon Wall

Jackson's peace sign

Kenny's interesting take on war. (If you don't understand the first word... well, I'm not going to tell you so better not ask it. Trust me, you're better off not knowing :p)

Me chilling in Prague. That's the Charles Bridge and Charles Bridge Tower in the background.

Our couchsurfing host in Prague, Martina

These are just a series of preview pictures that I'm posting in haste, will be doing a blow-by-blow account of our trip later. Till then, see ya!

Noveau Riche education sytem!

2008-01-27T23:06:00.000-08:00

Now that I am in Prague, I have an opportunity to experience different types of architectural masterpieces here- buildings of the baroque, gothic, noveau riche and so much more...

But anyway, talking about Noveau Riche, there's this new online website that provides an education system that works well!

Say you¨re a 48 year old stay at home mum, feeling left out at an opportunity to further your studies... or you¨re a 20 year old high school graduate with nothing in your life plans and nothing to lose, or you're a 40 year old business man wanting to get another degree to heighten your knowledge in the business field... ALL OF YOU should sign up to Noveau Riché.

Noveau Riche provides different study packages, college classes, tuition packages or continuing education credits for all. And for those who have a busy life, or those who chose to, there is also an online study package.

One thing for sure, Noveau Riché provides you with an educational environment that teaches adults the way to create wealth using the time-tested, foundational principles adhered to by all higher-education institutions.

Visit Noveau Riché at this website to discover for yourself, a world where you can achieve all your dreams- just in a click away!

Blog update-

2008-01-26T01:59:00.000-08:00

Status: Slightly light-headed after that glass of wine, and full from the dinner I cooked for my friends here
Location: Krakow, Maloslaskie, Poland
Mood: Happy?

I know I promised to update this blog every day in the trip but so far, it seems that this is highly impossible. In between going out roaming the cities, having and tasting the local meals, then interacting and having fun with my friends here... I barely have time to come online at all!

But anyway, will try my best to upload more pictures and insert in a complete trip report once I get the time.

But so far? I'm loving it a lot!

These are some 'previews' of the pictures I took so far-

Croquets- pancake wrapeed meat or vegetable filling- a Polish delicacy
Me and Kenny running away from something... in Vigeland Sculpture Park in Oslo
Me, tipsy from 3 shots of something, with an Andalucian Spaniard, a Slovak, a Norwegian and an Italian beauty in Oslo
Me and friends in Krakow, Poland
Kenny and Jackson gazing into the depth of each other eyes (while trying to keep a straight face) in Vigeland Park, Oslo

More to come soon!

Krakowvich

2008-01-25T13:20:00.000-08:00

Sorry for the delay in the update, I almost couldn't find time to come online at all! So far it's been great and I've enjoyed myself thoroughly, would like to explain everything in detail but seems like time doesn't allow! I've got to join my friends down stairs in a while. Stay tuned please for more update on intrepidlywrong.blogspot.com.

Learn Medical Assistance and other similiar online

2008-01-24T17:39:00.000-08:00

Just a few weeks ago me and my friends were researching on a topic called Primary Care Medicine, the impact that its decline would have on the society. If you do not know, primary care medicine, or commonly known general practitioners, cover range of medical fields like Therapy, Internal Medicine, Pediatrics, Family Medicine and in some cases Obstetrics and Gynaecology.

Just today an article that I read shows that the society now, especially the western one, is aging. As people age, diseases such as common ailment, cardiovascular diseases and others chronic diseases are common. But for this, the society also needs to have more people working in the field like nursing home workers, home health care aides and others. And now, there's a website online that does just this- provide the information and the education needed for meeting the society's demand of medical care workers.

Also, through this website, you get to learn different skills, namely ultrasound tech, medical assistants and alternative medicine like holistic medicine.

Can you imagine that? A website that acts as an ultrasound tech school? That's like the coolest thing in the world.

However, considering the demand that is presented right now in the medicinal field, an online ultrasound technician school is exactly what is needed. Therefore, I can suggest visiting this website to guarantee yourself a good future with a good career, and at the same time help out with people who need them.

I'm Leaving On A Jetplane...

2008-01-21T05:13:00.000-08:00

This past week has really been hectic for me with my examination and all.

However...

After tomorrow morning's final examination, I'll be free! I'll be soaring like a bird all across Europe. So where will the wind take me?

Stay tuned to Intrepidlywrong.blogspot.com to find out more...

Logo Designs at the tip of your fingers!

2008-01-21T04:50:00.000-08:00

I only just stumbled upon this new cool website. Now that I’m on the verge of starting my own web domain (I will be announcing soon- be patient…), I need to get me a NAME CARD! Haha!

So usually, a person like me, who has probably a model of laptop that 5 years too old, wouldn’t want to install a program like Photoshop just for the sake of creating myself a name card. Now, there’s a new solution!

If you head on to this site- http://www.logoyes.com/ you can save yourself hours of misery clicking away at a program made for the pro. It offers help for all the logo designs that you might be interested to create.

For example, I was thinking to start a domain by the name of Fat and balding.com, so all I did was head down to the site-

Select which type of company/purpose the card is meant for

Choose the type of logo I would want it to be

Type in some phrases

And voila! Looks pretty professional right?

And all it takes was barely 2 minutes clicking on the computer screen!

Also, you can engage the help of some professional designers on the site, who will help out in case you need, and create more logos or designs that you are interested in.

You can try it right now if you’d like, for free. So don’t hesitate in giving www.logoyes.com a try!

Poker me good!

2008-01-21T04:40:00.000-08:00

The festive season is coming again! At least for us Chinese that is, and once the holiday season arrives, one thing that is common is that me and my friends do is playing card games with each other. Over here in Russia, there’s no better way to spend your Chinese New Year than a game of Poker with your friends!

Today, I just discovered there’s a website that not only allows players to play poker online, it offers other services such as a Poker Odds Calculators, which allows you to calculate your odds during a game of poker.

You can play for fun, or play for money! Anyway you like it! Also, visit magicholdem.com for some poker tips and poker advices from experts in this field. And who knows, maybe you can be a pro one day too?

So visit magicholdem.com today!

Hotel Reservations and so much more is only a click away!

2008-01-17T14:20:00.000-08:00

When an avid traveler like me start planning for a trip, a lot of time goes into the actual planning- the food, the sights, the sounds, and of course, most importantly- the accommodation. I feel really fortunate to have stumbled upon this website- Hotel Reservations.com, which cater to every need of a traveler.

Whether your dream holiday is a cruise-get-away, a weekend off at a historic sight in Rome, Italy, or a month of honeymoon in discount hotel in a secluded island far from civilization… Hotel Reservations.com gives you all the options that you can think of!

I am fascinated at how well they take care of your needs. There’s a whole section of this site which devotes, for example, to the city guide. Say you need to learn about the history of Prague, the capital of Czech Republic and all things chic! Then click away at the ‘City Guide’ option and you can discover all you need about Prague; whether it is a map or general information about the city, food, drinks, travel details, emergency contacts, excursions to some historic sites, and transportation in the city… You name it, they’ve got it all.

Also, other than just you plain hotel reservations, this site also provide an amazing array of option for you to choose from; car rental, vacation tour packages, Flight travel options and so much more. Plus it serves you in different languages according to your preference.

Another wonderful aspect of Hotel Reservations.com, is that every search option you click, it searches through multiple suppliers to get you the best deals you can possibly get. So the prices that you get, are definitely the best ones that you can get anywhere else on the Net. So why waste time going through one search engine after the next, going through one travel agency after the other, when the best choices are only a click away?

So the next time you feel the urge to start planning for a trip? Remember to pay a visit to www.HotelReservations.com!

Photohunt: Important

2008-01-16T07:08:00.000-08:00

This week's topic is easy for me. Many things are important for me- friendship, the fact that I'm breathing, the condition of our world today, people suffering in different parts of the world, our earth, my relationship with God... the list goes on and on... Without a doubt, though, the thing I hold most precious to my heart in my family-

This picture was taken last year in July, during my summer vacation at home. I've never mentioned it here, but I spend 10 months each year in Russia, and only 2 (sometimes even barely) at home in Kuching. And every year, in July, I get to celebrate my mum's birthday!

And as you see here, my mum really is the world's greatest mum!

And indeed, nothing is more important to me than my family. And it takes being away from them so many years for you to finally realize how great you've had it. The home-cooked meals, the hearty conversations, the quarrels and squabbling we have, the Sunday mass and then dinner out together- that's become something that I always look forward to.

Anyway, I'm finishing my studies real soon, and all to soon I will be home at long last!

So what are important to the rest of you?

The bloggy-blog world's a better place with PayPerPost.com!

2008-01-13T01:24:00.000-08:00

Wow! Finally after a few months of applying for PPP (Pay Per Post), I finally got accepted today. For months now I have heard about this website from my other blogging friends, and not only how much fun they've had, but how much revenue they have managed to generate ina a short time. It sounds simply to good to be true.

Now, even you can have an opportunity to generate revenues for your sites/blogs. PPP gives bloggers an opportunity to review about a product, a service, or even unique content creators for an advertiser for a payment. It's as easy as that! In fact, in the process of doing so, I myself get to know about a whole range of products, services and others out there. It's like killing two birds with one stone! Also, PPP gives you an opportunity to do good for others. There's an option, that for each post you can either save the money for yourself, or if you don't need it, donate it to one of the selected charitable organizations.

Honestly? I'm thankful for PPP for giving me this opportunity. Knowing me, a 22 year old student, I'm hard pressed to maybe earn a little cash for myself, to lift the burden off my parents. And you can do the same for yourself too. All you need to do is to fill up this sign up form here, and you're ready to go.

Your Browser does not support IFrames: This form can not be rendered. Please visit PayPerPost to sign up.

Honestly? The blogging blog world is a much better one with Pay per post! You can visit Pay per post by clicking at the side bar there and signing up, or click on this link- payperpost

Photohunt: Skinny

2008-01-12T02:40:00.000-08:00

This week's theme of had me searching up and down, far and wide for an idea. There's a myriad of adjectives that you can use to describe me or any aspects of my life but skinny is definitely not one of them!

But anyway, I read that you find inspiration in the littlest things in life, even in the chicken you're about to chop out for dinner! As I was about to clean the chicken and remove whatever excess fat and skin, suddenly something stuck me- Chicken skin... Chicken skin... skin... ny... SKINNY!

I just knew I had to post this!

That looks plenty lot and pretty nasty, doesn't it? And to think the chicken wasn't that big at all (weighs about a kilo).

But afterwards I had a great dinner- Fried Chicken with Korean salad.

Have fun photohunting!

New Year Post~ Update

2008-01-12T02:14:00.000-08:00

***This post is an update from my New Year Post about the unfortunate car accident that befell 6 Malaysian students from Kursk***

If you read my previous posts, you would have known about the horrendous car accident that took place on New Year's Eve here in Kursk. As 6 students were on their way in a van heading towards Moscow, their van came into collision with another car from the opposite direction. As a result of that accident, all the students plus the driver and a codriver in the van, suffered various forms of injuries, while the driver and the passenger of the other car unfortunately lost their lives. But up till a few days ago, while chatting with my cousin (who was one of the students in the van), I saw this picture that he put up.

This picture was captured by Ryan, one of the students involved in the accident. You can read his blog and his personal account of the event here- 7 years and counting.

The van caught fire immediately after the collision (with the students still in it, dazed and confused from the ordeal). In fact my cousin said the dashboard was already on fire, and another student said that smog and fume from the fire had started bellowing by the time they escaped. Imagine the horror they must have felt at moment! But honestly, thankfully they all managed to escape and all of the students are doing well right now.

Me and my classmates, after our lesson in the regional hospital yesterday, paid a visit to the 3 students still in the hospital receiving treatment.

But anyway, on to a lighter note. I headed over to my cousin's place yesterday to check on how he's doing. I brought along with me some gauze, antiseptic solution, antiseptic cream and what not in case his wounds need some cleaning. But by the time I arrived his roommate, Sammy had already done the job-

He cleaned the area with some antiseptic cream then pasted on a band-aid to the area.

After the visit, his roommate even invited me for lunch.

Not bad for a roommate right? Having caring friends really make a difference in a situation like this. The parents of 2 of the girls will be visiting in a few day's time from Malaysia, but even right now they have friends accompanying them in the hospital.

But anyway, here's my cousin with me-

See? Smiling happily? Looks like he's doing ok right?

New Revolutionary Way of Advertising- Pay Per Play...

2008-01-10T15:18:00.000-08:00

There are a lot of bloggers out there, hoping to earn whatever they can manage. Well... I am one of them too. For those of you who are interested, there's this new company which features a revolutionary technique of advertising-

So the scenario is, what catches your attention? It is a lifeless, pictorial advertisement, or something that voices out and leaps at your attention! Point taken?

Also the best thing is, you can cash in according to the traffic you attract. It's too simple to be true right? Well it IS true. AND it features referal programme.

For more information, you can find out here- Pay Per Play. The thing is, the referal programme is limited, so I would advise you guys to hurry up and sign up while you still can.

Great news, isn't it?

Also, the site features a very good and detailed guide on how to set up everything. It's new, yes, but I have a really good feeling about this.

Anyway, if you need any extra help, either ask me here directly and I'll help you out anyway I know how, or else visit this website- Pay Per Play!

Walk Down Memory Lane pt. 2~ Paris~ City of Love...

2008-01-10T04:59:00.000-08:00

As the days tick closer and closer to the 23rd of January, I can't help but feel a rush of excitement. For the 3rd year in a row now I'll be going off on another european trip, this time a new list of countries that I have never been to before.

But my travel plans will only be revealed in a later post, so shh....

Anyway, 2 years ago, around this time (late January 2006), I embarked on a bus tour of to a few European countries. Starting off with St. Petersburg, the bus took us to Finland, Sweden, Germany, Netherlands and then ending up in France, the City of Love. Until today, my memory of that trip to Paris, France still remain vivid in my mind.

But anyway I'll be sharing some tips with those of you who either will be visiting, or plan to visit France sometime in the future.

The ATTRACTIONS:
We started the day with a visit to the Basilica of Sacre Ceur, an amazing cathedral built on the montmarte hill. Imagine the construction for this building started at 1870's! The best thing was from the top of the hill, you can have a bird eye's view of Paris in all its glory. Of course, The Eiffel Tower can be seen crowning the skyline at a distance. There is this saying, there isn't a spot in Paris that you wouldn't be able to see the Eiffel Tower.

But really, if it were up to me, I'd BUILD MY HOUSE in front of the Eiffel Tower if I was allowed to!

We visited Eiffel tower around 8pm at night. By then, they had a shining display, where thousands of fluorescent bulb light up at once, then goes off totally, then shines again as it goes shining shimmering splendid. It was breathtaking. Too bad once we arrived at the 2nd floor (the peak was closed off due to renovation), it started to snow. I couldn't get a good grip on my camera because I was shivering all the while.

Another good option is to take a boat trip along the Seine River at night. It was sooo romantic! They played soft romantic music in the background, and around you you see all these magnificient grandeur that is Paris. I fell in love with Paris that moment itself!

Other highlights include:

the Twelfth Century Cathedral Notre Dame de Paris

The Arc de Triomphe,
built by Napoleon's man for him but only finished constructed 500 years after his death

A stroll (window shopping) down the Champs d-Élysées

Getting yourself lost in the maze that is the Louvre

Sneaking a shot of the Mona Lisa (cough... cough...)

a day trip to Versailles, the homes of past Kings and Queens

a visit to Moulin Rouge for a cabaret extravaganza

Not forgetting also, a day at Paris Disneyland. Man, I felt 10 years younger, walking in Disneyland to the tunes of 'Under the Sea' as we entered the themepark. I had such a great time I didn't want to leave!

Here we are posing at adventureland, in front of the Pirates of Carribean ride. Did you know that the Pirates of Carribean originally started as a ride at the Disneyland themepark? It was only later that they decided to make a movie based on its success.

Here is Mickey, signing a fan's autograph. I coudln't give a mickey (couldn't care less) about Mickey at that time because I was busy running from one corner of the theme park to the next, trying to get into the queues to some of the rides that they had.

The FOOD
French Fries do NOT originate from France, contrary to some common believes. My last year's visit to Belgium revealed that.

Croissant in France is amazing. It's funny that something as simple as a baked loaf of flour can taste sooo good. We had it for breakfast every single morning without fail. It was crunchy on the outside and heavenly soft in the inside. Plus when you serve it warm with jam spread... you'll guaranteed to have a Culinary Orgasm!

Knowing me, a budget traveller, I cannot afford eating each meal at just any restaurant. But we did, however, promised ourselves at least ONE good French meal, complete with appetizers, main courses, dessert and wine!

For the first time in my life, I got to taste escargot, or snails. Surprisingly? They were delicious! The flavour of the herbs combines nicely with the soft texture of the snail and it goes down smoothly with a sip of wine...

(I don't know about you, but I'm slobbering now...)

The PEOPLE
French people are a proud lot, in a good way. They are proud of their language, proud of their country, their unique culture and everything else French. And I love that about them. On the streets, it is extremely hard to find a French who can verse in English, but either way, they will stop and help, and some went to the extent of physically pointing the said area on the map.

A tip for people planning to visit France- go online and ask around, you can definitely find a list of words for basic survival in France.

Until now, I've got it memorized, 'Excusez moi? Parlez vous Anglais?' (Excuse me, do you speak english?)

The ACCOMODATION
You probably can research about this on yourself. We unfortunately stayed in a 3 star hotel located quite far from the city centre. However, recently I found this website which lists some Paris bed and breakfast, called B&B Paris. Through the website, you can find some information about some choices of accomdation in Paris. And I agree with what they say wholeheartedly, it's not only an accomodation, but the experience that count. People catering to your need, serving you delicious breakfasts... sigh... You can't beat that.

Hope that helps with those of you who yearn to search for a Bed and Breakfast options or Hotel Paris.

The CONCLUSION
Go to Paris with an open mind, and you'll enjoy your trip. I did, and I hope this brief guide can help you guys.

au revoir!

Photohunt: Delicious ~~ Sarawak Laksa

2008-01-08T11:21:00.000-08:00

I know that this post is loooong overdue. I've been meaning to post it up but somehow have been delayed time and time again. Anyway, for my Photohunt picture post titled: Delicious~

At long last, Sarawak Laksa! Here it is, Sarawak Laksa in its entirety.

For those of you who still do not know about it, Sarawak laksa is a dish indigenous to Sarawakian. It is basically Vermicelli served with a spicy gravy (a mixture of prawn paste, sour tamarind, garlic, galangal, lemon grass and coconut milk and some other indigenous spices), served together with bean sprouts, chopped parsley, a squeeze of lime, sliced omelet, Steamed Chicken and the freshest prawn you can possibly imagine.

As you can see here… the ‘prawn’ ended up being substituted by small shrimps… That’s the bane of living in Russia. Prawns are frigging expensive here!

It looks not bad right? A dish prepared by a 22 year old male medical student! And the flavour was amazing too. I'm drooling right now looking at the pictures!

But anyway, for about a year now I took part in an online community for travelers, called Fodors.com. I know that food and travel compliment each other as well as cheese and wine, so I started a thread, asking these questions:

1. Where do you come from? And

2. What food must you absolutely try in your hometown (and where best to try it)?

My answer was this

1. I come from Kuching, Sarawak, it's at the western tip of the Borneo islands, with lush greeneries, sunny weather all year long and warm and friendly people! It's also where we have the Rainforest Music Festival every July!

2. You must absolutely try out the Sarawak Laksa. It's Vermicelli with a spicy gravy (a mixture of prawn paste and some indigenous spices), served together with bean sprouts, chopped parsley, a squeeze of lime, sliced omelet, Steamed Chicken and the freshest prawn you can possibly imagine.

It's spicy, and full of a variety of flavour that will leave you wanting more!

The best place to taste it would probably be my home, since my elder brother cooks the best Sarawak Laksa. Alternatively, there's this shop at 3rd mile in Kuching, called the Golden Arch which also makes really really good Laksa.

But now, in retrospect, I can proudly add, ‘MY OWN KITCHEN HERE IN RUSSIA’ to the place best to taste it.

But anyway, after the thread was posted, the response was staggering! I had a hundred over replies over just a few days. Some interesting answers include these:

===================================================================================

Author: seebee

1. Springfield, Illinois - home of Abraham Lincoln and the new Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum and a great stop on Route 66.

2. Our famous gastronomical adventure is called a "horseshoe". It is an open-face sandwich starting with a piece of toast on the bottom; on top of this you add your choice of meat, such as hamburger, ham, shrimp; on top of this you place a heaping mound of french-fried potatoes; and to top it off, you pour a rarebit melted cheese sauce.

You can find "horseshoes" in any local restaurant.
=====================================================================================

Author: Loveling

1. Bergen, Norway

2. Søstrene Hermelins Fish soup. VERY cheap and the the best Bergen experience all my visitors have had.
=====================================================================================

Author:speckles

1. Adelaide, South Australia.

2. We have a food that is unique to SA. I believe it is unique for a reason - it looks absolutely vile. However, we are still "famous" for it. Even comedian Billy Connolly tried it on a doco he made of Australia.

The pie floater is a standard meat pie (ie the ones which must have a minimum (and probably also maximum) 30% "meat product"). The pie sits in a bowl of pea and ham soup and is covered in tomato sauce/ketchup. It can be bought from a mobile pie stand which sets up at a certain point in Adelaide after dark. You probably have to jostle with drunks and homeless people to get your pie.

http://www.woodbegood.pl/pl/wiki/Grafika:Pie_floater.jpg.html
Another food we are famous for (and is by the same company, Balfours, is the frog cake. Again, they're not the most enticing food, but kids seem to like them. It's even been heritage listed! Says a lot for our state.

http://www.nationaltrustsa.org.au/images/movable/frogcake.jpg=====================================================================================

Author: pollyvw

1. Baxley, GA USA

2. Boiled Peanuts (in the shell)

Buy them from street vendors in season or knock on anyone's door.
=====================================================================================

Author: lobo_mau

1 Lisbon

2 Pig's ears salad, eaten everywhere, anytime.
=====================================================================================

Author: angelnot1

1. I come from Poland and live in Australia so ...

2. Poland - bigos( stew of meats including venison,sausages, sourkraut), pierogi ( ravioli like with different fillings), barszcz ( beetroot soup)

Australia- kangaroo steak, Batemans Bay oysters (and all other seafood), waguyu steak, pavlova ( although New Zealanders argue that is is theirs) and of course a vegemite sandwich
=====================================================================================

I am heading to Poland and Norway in a few week’s time so some of their replies really came in handy. Also the post about Adelaide Australia was also interesting. Click on the link to check out how does pie floater look like. Knowing me, I'd give give anything a try at least once in my lifetime!

But anyway, it’s my turn to ask here:

1. Where do you come from? And

2. What food must you absolutely try in your hometown (and where best to try it)?

Enlighten me with your answers!

Walk Down Memory Lane...

2008-01-08T10:09:00.000-08:00

Growing up, I remember playing all these little board games. I used to be really good in mastermind, ‘fei ji qi’ (airplane chess), and Go boardgame.

Then again, there was my all time favorite, the Chinese Jungle Chess set.

Oh man, looking at this picture brings back old memories. Honestly? I’ve totally forgotten how to play the game! But for those of you who never knew it to begin with, there are basically 8 animals in this board games, and they are all ranked as the following, from the ‘strongest’ to the ‘weakest’.

8 - Elephant (Chinese: 象; pinyin: xiàng)
7 - Lion (simplified Chinese: 狮; traditional Chinese: 獅; pinyin: shī)
6 - Tiger (Chinese: 虎; pinyin: hǔ)
5 - Leopard (Chinese: 豹; pinyin: bào)
4 - Dog (Chinese: 狗; pinyin: gǒu)
3 - Wolf (Chinese: 狼; pinyin: hǎng, láng, lǎng, làng)
2 - Cat (Chinese: 貓; pinyin: māo)
1 - Mouse (Chinese: 鼠; pinyin: shǔ)

For example, elephant can ‘eat’ the animals ranked lower than it, just as lion can ‘eat’ tiger, and leopard and dog and so on… Well you get the picture. Your goal is to lead your herd of animals across the board game, leaping across mountainous terrains, traps, rivers and rival animals to reach the other end!

The only odd part is that somehow, the mouse ‘eats’, of all things, the elephant… And for the longest time afterwards, I always had this misconception that somehow in the wild, mice feed on elephants.

Oh well… maybe they do.

But if there’s one board game that I wished I had mastered back when I was young, it would definitely be Backgammon. Good thing there’s this website which allows you to play online backgammon with people all over the world. Turns out it isn’t too late yet for me to start to play backgammon now, even at age 22! Haha! This website lists all the possible tournaments and apparently you can even play to win money!

How about playing backgammon online for a living? Now that's a profession even I would never have thought about.

What about you guys? What were you favourite childhood board game?

Life is a box of chocolates... Oh, the irony!

2008-01-06T15:15:00.000-08:00

If there's a movie quote that wouldn't stop bugging me these few days, it's that one from Forrest Gump, where he said 'Life is a box of chocolates, you never know what you're gonna get'. True, how true. If there's another thing that I believe in, it's that life is full of ironies. Take this one for example:

Example 1:
For quite a few weeks, every morning as I walk past the main entrance of the hostel to head to classes, a kitten would be awaiting, prowling around the main entrance, as if lonely and in need for a company. If I wasn’t in a rush I would stoop down, give the kitten a loving pet around its ears and feel it purring against me. After a few days, I think it got familiarized with me too, and I started feeding it with sausages, and sometimes bring down a small bowl of milk from my room (hostel rule strictly prohibits rearing pets of any kind in the room).

Since then a few students got really familiar with the kitten too, and someone provided a box for it, located just outside the main entrance of the hostel. I took down a piece of cloth for it and others ‘donated’ some other pieces of clothing. At the end, I think it got a pretty comfortable loft to sleep in.
(picture courtesy of Yuinyin.com)

Then one day on the way back from class, as usual I looked around for the kitty, but not only can’t I find it, its little cardboard box was also missing. Immediately I asked the hostel commandant. She explained, ‘A welfare officer from the university came by the hostel for a visit this morning, when he saw the kitten in the box he threw away the box and I don’t know what he did with the cat. He said stray animals may contain fleas or even worse- some diseases and he doesn’t want the hostel students to catch it’

I was angry to say the least!

It’s just a little kitten for goodness sake, and he had the galls to describe the adorable thing like it was the catalyst for the next bubonic plague or influenza outbreak.

The Irony...
This ‘welfare officer’ apparently makes frequent checks on the hostel. How then can he miss this?

Or this?

For your information, this is a scene from my kitchen. I live on the third floor, and the common waste disposal bin is located literally meters away from where I cook, where I sleep and where I live.

And for your information, everyday when we head towards the nearest bus stop to catch a ride to the hospitals for our lessons, and on our way back, we definitely will pass by this dumpster and whatever embellishment people decide to decorate around the dumpster. And more often than not, this is what we see.

A cat versus a dumpster (possible swarming with an infestation of different kinds of bacteria and other microbial existence) going rampant? You do the math yourself...

Example 2:
On one hand, Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, the Prime Minister of Malaysia, mentioned in his speech during a Christmas Day celebration in Kuala Lumpur.

“I’m really concerned when issues involving religion are brought up from time to time and the attendant problems that all of us would need to address. If moderates don’t take centre stage, surely extremist elements will occupy it, making us fall for their extremist approach being touted as a religious or national approach.”

In his speech, he’s mentioning that in a multicultural and multi-religious country like Malaysia, we should exercise moderation when it comes to issues concerning religion- something that I agree and support wholeheartedly.

The Irony...
On the other hand, the leading catholic weekly newsletter, the Catholic Herald, was slapped with a license suspension notice 3 days later, and headlines like these were splashed across newspapers worldwide:

World Africa, Reuter.com- 28 Dec 2007 ‘Malaysia faces Christian outcry over word "Allah"'

AsiaNews- 28 Dec 2007 ‘Catholic weekly denounces government for banning Christians from using the world “Allah”'

MalaysiaNews.Net- 4 January 2008 ‘Malaysia says Herald not allowed to use the word Allah in its publication’

Apparently, due to the usage of the word ‘Allah’ in its Malay language print, the government, via the Internal Security Act, had imposed a suspension on the Newsletter’s license. The reason was that they had mentioned the word ‘Allah’ can only be exclusively used by Malaysian Muslim in order to avoid confusion.

In fact, as this following article states, Arabian Christian has been using the world Allah to refer to God, even before the existence of Islam. And in other Muslim countries, like Iran, Pakistan, Indonesia, Egypt and so on, the usage of Allah in Christian literature is allowed. No confusion raised. Period.

And yet, the Internal Security Act, whom Abdullah Badawi is the head of, slaps a suspension of the newsletter of a different race, days after he himself mentioned ‘religious moderation’ and denounces religious extremism, and days after he shook the hands of Christians and wished them Merry Christmas.

Go figure.

Well, since then the issue has cleared up. And the Catholic Herald is given permission to continue using the word ‘Allah’ in its publication.

Example 3:
Last year June, on the way back home to Malaysia for my summer break, I stopped by Hong Kong with a friend, Eddy.

One of the highlights of the trip was our visit to the Ocean Park, Hong Kong. Not only was the theme park beaming with each kind of attraction, I was also particularly enthralled by the different marine life specimens showcased there. Like this one, of a very rare and near threatened leafy sea horse, or Phycodurus eques.

Notice how well it camouflages against the weeds in the aquarium? My next favorite would probably be the sea turtle. Since I live in Malaysia, home of the leatherback turtles, I somehow feel connected to this little being swimming serenely (and maybe somewhat frantically) in this (claustrophobic) aquarium.

Also, I took great notice of their conservative efforts of marine lives, as well as other animals. Apparently, they had even set up a conservation foundation, promoting conservative efforts to protect not only dolphins, whales and giant pandas, but also to protect other animals such as birds, reptiles and amphibians of Asia.

In fact, Hong Kong has been very vocal about their role in preserving the marine lives and other environmentalist issue. Their efforts in raising awareness and preserving sea turtles, for example, has been featured in CNN.

The Irony...
On the way out from the amusement park, lo and behold! At the exit of the park, along the coast, you can see rubbish and garbage just strewn across the ocean.

From these pictures (the Mine Train, a rollercoaster attraction in Adventure land, Ocean Park is seen at the background), you can see Styrofoam boxes, plastic bags, paper wastes, straws and other wastes polluting the sea. As you know, plastic bags threaten the already frail existence of the turtles. Turtles tend to mistake plastic wastes as jellyfish, a main source of food, with deadly results.

It is therefore an irony how on one hand they're doing their best to help out the marine life, then on the other, Ocean Park, one of the most prominent landmark of Hong Kong, as well as the world’s number 7 most popular park (as described by Forbes), is by themselves contributing to sea pollution.

How about you? Any other ironies that you know of worthy of mention?

Charity Drive Kursk 2007/08- The Finale: A Visit to the Orphanage

2008-01-03T13:48:00.000-08:00

Finally, the day arrived- the day that we will be visiting the orphanage at Prospekt Druzhberi here in Kursk, Russia. For us, after a few months of hard work and planning for our Winter Charity Drive, this visit is like the pinacle to all our vision. Even during the whole drive, every student who were a part of it felt blessed, and this visit to the orphanage would definitely be like the cherry topping on the black forrest cake that we've already loved so much.
(read previous posts to this series to find out about our charity drive- Parts 5, 4 , 3 here, 2 and 1 here)

So anyway, what are Malaysian students in Russia to do when surrounded by a group of Russian children? We smile with them, we laugh with them, we play with them and we have fun together. And that was exactly what we did!

Qi Jie and Johnny in charged of the PA system

The event started off with me, the MC of the day, wishing everybody a Happy New Year, the hall was full of audience; children, workers at the home, and foreign students alike watch in excitement as we deliver one great performance after another.

The children at the orphanage awaiting the performance
Me emceeing po-russki (Russian Language)

The full programme listing was as follow:
1. Diana's Solo Performance- Shen Qi

2. Sandhun's Indian Dance-

3. Chinese Martial Art and Dance Performance-

Jason performs his martial arts and nunchucks performance in this clip. Russians, especially young children, are typically very interested in the Chinese Martial Arts, and idolize movie stars like Bruce Lee and Jacky Chan.

http://rapidshare.com/files/81049480/2._Martial_Arts_Performance.AVI.html Titus, my roommate, started off with a wushu performance, followed by Bernard and Lawrence's Taichi, then ended with Nate's amazing Wushu display. This is definitely a clip worth watching.

http://rapidshare.com/files/81051880/3._Chinese_Dance_Performance.AVI.html Benedict and Benjamin choreographed this dance performance which features them dancing to a medley of Jay Chow's songs. It was power-packed and received perhaps the loudest cheers yet.

4. Sumazau and Ngajat Traditional Performance-

http://rapidshare.com/files/81059012/4._Traditional_Sumazau_Dance.AVI.html

5. Danielle and Sandhun's Latin Dance-
http://rapidshare.com/files/81062372/6._Latin_Dance.AVI.html

I must say that every performance was extremely extraordinary. The children were clapping and dancing along to the performances, and when they finished, they all cheered enthusiastically. I myself cannot thank all the performers enough. They are all close friends of mine who all did me a huge favour and I owe them a big one. Some people, like Diana and Jason, agreed even when I approached them last minute (to be precise, the day before the visit!). And some others, like Danielle, has never yet in her life performed in front of a crowd. Others like Sandhun was having a fever and a difficult examination looming around the corner, and people like Benedict and Emilyn agreeing to perform without even a second of hesitation. In short, the trip was a success largely due to their contribution.

http://rapidshare.com/files/81060083/8._Games_Clip_2.AVI.html

After the dances and songs were done, I handed the mike to Mex for the games. It was hilarious! From the moment he took the stage, we were all on stitches, laughing our hearts out. And the children were very keen to take part in them too. Needless to say, we were never short of volunteers from the crowd.

After the games were done, Danielle, Mex, Charmaine, Roberto and Emilyn performed the 'welcome clap' routine for the children. And this was another crowd favourite. It was also my first time learning so my attention was on them the whole time.

http://rapidshare.com/files/81047597/12._Father_John___Russian_Santa_Claus.AVI.html
After the games, I handed the mike to Father John. In this clip, he wished the children Happy New Year and explained that we, Malaysian medical students here in Kursk, Russia, started a charity drive for them, raising funds by offering to cut hair, selling cookies, christmas cards and others for them. He asked, 'do you wish them to pay you a visit again in the future?' They all answered, 'yes, of course!'. Saint Nicholas, or more popularly known as Santa Claus, made an appearance here with his angel too.

For each of the children we bought New Year cards of various designs, which were distributed to them. The sport items, cardboard games and other collected items for donation were also handed over to the head of the children home.

Group Photo

All and all, it was a pretty amazing experience. Even right now, 12 hours after the event ended, I am still smiling fondly of the experience. We all worked hard, and prayed even harder, for this to be a success and it did. Everyone left feeling happy and with a smile on their face. That was more than what we could have wished for.

After buying drinks and some refreshments for the event, we were left exactly with 70 rubles leftover. Right now me and Jane are discussing the possibility to make this a constant thing, and perhaps, just perhaps, with God's blessing of course, we will be organizing another trip in the nearest future. Hopefully that one will be just as successful as, if not more than, this trip.

Thanks to all of you for your prayer, your support, your contribution and your help in making Christmas Charity Drive a success!

===End to Christmas Charity Drive 2007/08 Series===

Happy New Year...

2008-01-01T12:50:00.000-08:00

Sorry for the tone, I'm just not feeling the festive mood today. I woke up to a horrible news by my cousin's roommate. Yesterday I was supposed to meet my cousin for lunch, kind of like a farewell lunch, since he's leaving Kursk to Moscow to catch a flight to KL today at 6pm. But somehow we cancelled lunch and I sent an SMS asking him to have a safe journey, and take care. I can only imagine his excitement to finally be able to go back home (just in time for the New Year celebration in Kuching) after 8 months being here in Russia.

This morning, his roommate's sms woke me up, and I immediately leapt forward when I read what he said- 'Your cousin's been involved in a car accident. The whole van that they took caught fire and burnt'. My initial reaction was- this can't be happening! The journey from Kursk to Moscow takes approximately 8 hours, and to catch their flight to Bangkok at 6pm in the evening, their van picked them up at 5am in the morning. Halfway through their journey in a village called pskov, their van had a head-on collison with a car which was halfway through overtaking another car. And from what I heard of it, the accident was a pretty bad one.

The driver and passenger from the other car died on the spot. In the van that my cousin and 5 other Malaysians were in, the driver was seriously wounded and unconscious, his son who was sitting next to him was the one who dragged him out into safety. He then proceeded to pull open the door to the van and pull out some of the students who were inside. Out of the 6 Malaysian students, 2 were thrown out during the collision, my cousin, who received some cuts and bruises, helped some other students out. 2 students suffered fracture of the leg bone, one suffered a shoulder dislocation, another one an ankle dislocation. While my cousin was still in the van, disoriented from the collison, one of his friend already mentioned that the van was on fire. The fire eventually spread to the whole vehicle and all their luggages and items were burnt.

However, thank God that all our Malaysian students are now doing fine, but I really feel sorry to the 2 Russians who lost their lives.

(it just turned 12am here in Kursk- Happy New Year...)

I honestly couldn't even imagine myself if I was in the same situation as they were. From being excited, knowing that you are hours away from the comfort of your home and your family- to being in an accident, suffering injuries, and for 3 of the students, they are stuck in a hospital 3 hours away from Kursk, in the city of Tula, awaiting their release before they can be continued to be treated here in Kursk.

And in my 5 years here, this is the first time that our Malaysian medical student here in Kursk got involved in such a terrible accident.

When Lowell (my cousin) arrived in his hostel by taxi from Pskov, I went to pay him a visit, to check on how he's doing. He appeared fine, except he suffered a bout of headache and had to take some pills for it. The worst thing was when I found out that he hadn't received any medical attention at all from the moment of the accident. No doctors asked him anything, no one measured his Blood Pressure, no X-rays were done even though he had bruises on his head and suffer from joint pain. Immediately I asked the guard of the hostel to call an ambulance and me and his roommate took him to the hospital to have an X-ray done.

4 X-rays later, the doctor said he suffered from concussion. For his injury I was asked to get him some antiseptic solution, and for his headache some painkiller. I invited him and his roommate for a dinner at my place just in case he was hungry but he declined.

Anyway, after the whole ordeal, I really felt drained. Right now, from my windows I can see the fireworks display at a distance. Nearly all of my friends, including my roommmate is out in the city square, celebrating the new year with hundreds of foreigners and Russians alike. I just can't find the energy to walk there, what more to say celebrate the new year?

What about the rest of you? I hope that your New Year celebration was better than mine. I can assure you I have never been so shocked or surprised in my life.

Well, hope you all have a Happy New Year...

Christmas Charity Drive Kursk 2007 - Part 5

2008-01-01T11:04:00.000-08:00

I think there is no better way to start off the New Year than with an uplifting and cheerful post. Yesterday's unfortunate incident left many a people shaken and traumatized, but all's well now. The Malaysian student here are doing well, even the 3 remaining students in Tula are on their way back to Kursk, after the Malaysian Embassy sent their delegates to transport them safely from that city.

I visited my cousin this morning and brought over some chicken porridge (a typical Chinese diet regime after injuries/sickness). He's recovering and I brought some movies over for him to spend some time. He decided to stay on in Kursk for his 3 weeks of holiday, and then after the examination will decide again wether to return to Malaysia or not. Otherwise he's fine, except suffering some body ache and neck ache. Also although he managed to take pull his laptop out from the flaming van, the LCD monitor was totally damaged and the laptop currently cannot be used.

But onto today's post. As you can read previous posts to this series from the following links (parts 4 here, 3 here, 2 here and 1 here), a small group of Malaysian students here in Kursk came together to organize a Charity Drive during this Christmas season. As you can read in my previous posts, we met with lots of obstacles along the way, but by God's grace, everything was resolved and the whole charity drive can be described as nothing but a huge success. From barely anything, we managed to scrape together a huge sum of money, a sponsorship, as well as other forms of donations for the less fortunate people here in Kursk. Anyway, I can summarize the whole event in the following:

Winter Charity Drive 2008
Total Amount Collected by 1st January 2008:
Jane's Barbershop: 1390 rubles
Sales of Christmas Cards + Church Donation: 2020 rubles
Sales of Butter Cookies: 700 rubles
Sales of Pizzas and Burgers: 700 rubles
____________________________________________________________

Total: 4890 rubles

So in the space of 2 months, we managed to collect nearly 5 thousand rubles (RM 680) worth of donation, plus tonnes of donated clothes and other items. And I did feel that God led us every step of the way, and like I said before, this whole process was a blessing in so many ways, for all of us.

As you can see here, parallely to our effort to collect money, we also reached out to the student community for donations of unused clothes, blankets, pillows and other items. We were overwhelmed with their response. For weeks my room had been congested with plastic bags of items and finally, on the 23rd December, we ordered a taxi to transport all the donated items to church.

The tiny hand in the last picture belonged to Jane, who nearly drowned under the heaps on cloth!

When stacked up together, they reach almost to Jane's height. All the donated clothes were sent to an Home for the Elderly in Kursk. Last Sunday in Church the sister thanked me, and asked me to say thank you to the rest of the students for their generosity.

But that wasn't all, items like shoes, sport shoes, boots, toys, gloves and scarves (too little for adults), soft toys, teddy bears and some toys, I kept under my table to be donated to the orphanage along with out visit later-

If you read my previous post about the pre-visit to the orphanage, , you would have read that the caretakers of the orphanage told us the children would appreaciate gifts like badminton rackets, badminton shuttle cocks, ping pong bats and ping pong balls, skipping ropes, maybe footballs and basketballs, and other games which involve team effort and interaction, which was exactly what I got for them. A little bargaining in the market nearby and I managed to purchase this for them-

I spent a total of 1300 for the sport items and monopoly game set, and another 1000 rubles for the Christmas cards for each of the child (10 rubles a piece for 100 children), and another 1100 rubles will be spent for the van to transport the students and presents there, so that leaves us about a thousand rubles in excess. I will decide with my friends on what to do with the money, either we purchase some books and other toy sets for the children, or we will keep it and use it in our next visit to the orphanage. Either way, the money will be spent for a good reason!

I also need to mention about our sponsor, from Evropa the department store, I was asked to give him a call tomorrow to confirm on what to be expected, and the manager so far promised to donate condiments and sweets, as well as some items for the children.

Right now, we're in our final stages of planning for this visit. So far a few performances are already confirmed and one thing for sure, I know that the orphans will enjoy this visit from us as much as we will enjoy their company.

(to be continued on 3rd January, 2008)

The Great Mouse Hunt- A Continuation...

2007-12-30T12:09:00.000-08:00

-The following scenes may contain grotesque and violent images and is not suitable for viewing of people who lack a sense of humour. Viewer disgression is adviced-
(Continuation from previous posts, here and here).

Days after we searched around Eddy and Teo's room for that unholy presence, we are still unsuccessful in the mouse hunt saga. More packets of precious instant noodles being ravaged and more sleepless nighs later, the rat has still eluded capture.

The worst thing is, it does seem to get braver and braver by the day. Just yesterday morning, in broad daylight, he decided to show up, of all places, on Teo's table, visibly scurrying around for all to see, as tough teasing us! How dare he!

Now, both of them are forced to relocate tonnes of their stuffs, to prevent more items falling victim to the rat.

Teo finally decided he has had enough, and kicked it up a notch, when previously he tried his best to capture it, now he's seeking to DESTROY it! Here you can see him setting up some traps, what seems like colourful and delicious pieces of biscuits... in all actuality... are POISONS!

Previously, Choc Ky said he heard the sounds of scratching in Eddy's cupboards. A thorough searching later, I stumbled upon this-

A hole in between the inbuilt cupboard and the wall...

The rat's safe haven!

Now that we know where he hides, we can finally concentrate all efforts of trapping him. A few initial ideas include this-
1. Crack Eddy's cupboard open, demolishing it totally to catch it!
2. Spray some insect repellent, or toilet fresheners into the hole until he suffocates and dies!
3. Teo suggested turning on the vacuum cleaner, and by the action of suction, suck the rat into the vacuum cleaner!

But after we contacted a few seniors, Raymond (Ingrid's hubby) came up with what seems like a fool-proof idea, a home made mouse trap.

So ever wondered what goes into making a mouse trap? All you need is one bottle of any kind, a few pieces of biscuit and a pen-knife.
1. Cut a small hole, about the size of the rat, at the bottom on one side of the bottle/plastic container.
2. Place a piece of biscuit in it. Remember the Gingerbread people post I did a few days ago? As if I haven't tortured them enough, Teo plucked the hand off one Gingerbread man to use as the mouse bait!

The principle is this.
The rat, having smelt the unmistakable aroma that is the arm of Mr Gingy the gingerbread man, will be pulled towards the bottle.

When he's busy eating his meal/bait, push the bottle down and trap him inside!

Of course, we were ecstatic to hear the idea, and it took near to nothing to produce the home-made trap. The only catch is having to actually sit- and wait it out- for the rodent to make his appearance!

Poor Raymond, he sat there, in total silence and inanimation for nearly an hour!

At the end, we surrounded the escape route of the mouse with some medical books, the most convenient thing to medical students like us. I think the publishers of Frank Netter's Atlas of Anatomy and Guyton & Hall's Textbook of Medical Physiology would be damn proud to see the multi-functionality of their books!

Alas, the rat escaped to bring more chaos and discord, and wreak more havoc, and unleash more vileness unto the poor inhabitants of room 311...

Balls, Lotsa balls...

2007-12-28T13:04:00.000-08:00

This is another post that's long overdue. The Winter solstice festival, or dong zhi as we chinese call it, is one of the many major chinese celebrations, which is celebrated on the 22nd of December. In mainland China in the olden days this day mark the peak of winter, and usually it is a time when the families gather together and cherish each other.

During this festival, normally the family make a type of dessert called tang yuen, or glutinous rice balls. In the Chinese tradition, round normally signifies unity, and it symbolizes the unity and togetherness of the family. Anyway, for those of you who are interested to learn how to make some glutinous rice ball dessert, this is for you-

Balls, Lotsa Balls... (Glutinous Rice Balls- Wet and Dry Types) Recipe
Ingredients:
2 cups of Glutinous Rice Flour
2/3 cup of Cold water
Castor Sugar
Pandan Essence (Extract from screwpine leaves, or Pandanus amaryllifolius)
A few pieces of Sliced Ginger
Ground Peanut
Red/Green Colouring

Steps:
1. Pour Glutinous Rice Flour into a bowl, and mix in cold water little by little each time, kneading it the whole time. Adjust the consistency until you achieve a smooth dough which doesn't stick to the fingers.

2. Divide the dough into little small portions and knead into small balls.

3. Other variants to glutinous rice balls includes adding some ground peanuts into the centre, and pinching the edges together to have some ground peanut fillings. Otherwise, you can 'trap' your family and friends, like me, by secretly hiding some WASABE PASTE into the rice balls, heehee!

4. You can add some colouring to the dough, giving it a more colourful appearance.

5. Boil water in a pot, add sugar and Pandan essence. A new suggestion by a friend was to add a few slices of ginger into the soup, which takes away the floury taste from the soup.

6. Throw the balls into the boiling soup. It takes only a few minutes before the balls are cooked. When all the balls are cooked, they float to the top.

7. You may serve either in bowls with the soup, piping hot (wet type) . Or drain the balls, and mix them in a mixture of ground peanuts and castor sugar, which serves better chilled (dry type).

The best thing about doing little desserts like this is the interaction that you have during the whole process. The laughter, the chit-chat, the hearty conversations are as important as any part of this recipe. So do it together with your friends/families!

Run and Run as Fast as You can, You can't Catch me, I'm the Gingerbreadman!

2007-12-28T03:41:00.000-08:00

-The following scenes may contain grotesque and violent images and is not suitable for viewing of people who lack a sense of humour. Viewer disgression is adviced-

This post is a few days overdue,

Kit Fong has been mentioning it,
so has Johnny,
and Ingrid.

I've been wanting to post it but have been caught up in too many things of late. Anyway, ever since I was young, my parents have been reading me lots of nurdery rhymes, aesop fables and the likes, which you can see, more or less, influence me in my way of thinking (waaaaay too optimistic), my gesture of speech (never serious), and my literary point of view (nonsensical).

But one of the poems which sticks out vividly in my mind, includes something like this- 'Run and run as fast as you can, you can't catch me, I'm the gingerbread man!'

And this Christmas, when I read that Gingerbread people were on sale, I was more than delighted to be reminded of a piece of my childhood.

A few days ago, they started distributing the gingerpeople, and I received a few.

So here's a play by play instruction on how to eat a gingerbread man-

1. Gingerbread persons have a tendency to run right after they are baked (not so the women, since they trip and fall on their laces way too often), so lock the back doors, make sure the cat flaps are blocked and other exits like the fireplace or windows are shut.

2. To eat, grab him by his foot.

3. Amputate him, this way, he won't be able to run.

4. Take a bite off of the other foot.

5. Now that he has no way of escaping, it's time to bite off his grubby, fingerless hands!

6. Bite off what's remaining of his torso.

7. Last but not least, put an end to his misery but biting off his head.

8. Though if he had sweat glands he'd probably look more like this-

Anyway, thanks Lynn Wei, Niny, Diana, Sakthis, Ru Yi and Pei Fern for your gingerbread people. My mum says once someone gets you something, you need to repay their kindness twice over, so I baked them all Christmas croissants instead.

I googled up the poem I mentioned above, and found this, for old time's sake, here's the Gingerbread man rhyme-

Once there was a gingerbread man,
Baking in a gingerbread pan.
Raisin eyes and a cherry nose,
Trimmed right down to his fingers and toes.
A gingerbread man in a gingerbread pan!

Here's the old woman who made him so sweet,
A treat for her and her husband to eat,
She made him with flour and sugar and eggs,
She gave him a face and two arms and two legs.
A gingerbread man in a gingerbread pan!

Now open the oven to see if he's done,
This gingerbread man, he know how to run.
Out of the oven and onto the floor,
Now run away out the kitchen door.
The gingerbread man, he's out of the pan!

Now chase him old woman, now chase him old man
Chase him, yes chase him as fast as you can!
Through the garden and out the gate,
Catch him right now, before it's too late.
The gingerbread man, he's out of the pan!

Along came a cow who wanted a treat
And the gingerbread man, he looked good to eat
Run, run, as fast as you can
You can't catch me, I'm the gingerbread man
I'm the gingerbread man and I'm out of the pan!

Along came a horse who wanted a snack
But the gingerbread man, he never looked back
Run, run, as fast as you can
You can't catch me, I'm the gingerbread man
I'm the gingerbread man and I'm out of the pan!

Along came a farmer who wanted a treat
And the gingerbread man, he looked good to eat
Run, run, as fast as you can
You can't catch me, I'm the gingerbread man
I'm the gingerbread man and I'm out of the pan!

Along came a dog who wanted a snack
But the gingerbread man, he never looked back
Run, run, as fast as you can
You can't catch me, I'm the gingerbread man
I'm the gingerbread man and I'm out of the pan!

Along came a hog who wanted a treat
And the gingerbread man, he looked good to eat
Run, run, as fast as you can
You can't catch me, I'm the gingerbread man
I'm the gingerbread man and I'm out of the pan!

Along came a fox who wanted a treat,
And this gingerbread man, he looked good to eat.
Jump on my back, my gingerbread pet,
And we'll cross the river, so you won't get wet
Mr. Gingerbread man, who's out of the pan!

There was no place to go, there was no place to run
And a ride on the river could be lots of fun!
So off with the fox did Gingerbread go
And what happened next, you already know
To the gingerbread man, who's out of the pan

That sly old fox had a de-lic-ious treat
And the old man and woman had nothing to eat
Not a bite was left for the cow or the dog,
The horse or the farmer or hungry old hog
There's no gingerbread man in or out of the pan!

So let us go home and get out the pan
And we'll make ourselves a new gingerbread man!
And when he is eaten, we'll make us some more
But this time we'll be certain to lock the back door!
A new gingerbread man, in a gingerbread pan!

And apparently, there's a Russian version of the gingerbread man tale, about a round shaped piece of bread, who escaped after being baked. The story then tells of his journey while encountering different animals who attempted to eat him.

The Great Mouse Hunt- Part III

2007-12-27T12:02:00.000-08:00

A Recap-
Eddy, halfway through his round Counter Strike match with some friends, noticed something furry and black crawling near the foot of his bed, next to the central heating grill.

That night, both Eddy and Teo, his roommate, suffered a night of unrestful sleep, filled with incessant squeaking, which prompted us into a hunt-

THE GREAT MOUSE HUNT

The next day, we purchases some glue, which we hoped would capture the mouse. The traps were set, and the stage were set for what would be a successful capture of the pestilent rodent.

Days (many more sleepless nights)later, the mouse still hasn't been caught, but what has been are more packets of Maggi noodles being gnawed open...

More money spent on buying and more time wasted on setting the traps...

So far, it has eluded all traps, kind of like the smart mouse in the movie, The Mouse Hunt-

Though I was kind of hoping the rat would turn out to be as cute as this sweater and khakis wearing mouse-

And silently hoping also that it might just be well-versed enough in the art of cooking to maybe serve me a dish of French Ratatouille-

Still the only mouse/rat we could find is this

The imprints of a Mickey Mouse on Niny's Pajamas.

At this rate, I was suggesting to Eddy that he might have to finally accept the fact that he will be having 2 roommates instead of 1! And somedays when we get into a quarrel, I can just threaten to throw another rat into his room and let them BREED!

The way I look at it- a little problem of rat infestation isn't too bad right?

Take a listen to this song, it makes you thinking really.
Year of the Rat- Badly Drawn Boy

I'm Dreaming of a White Christmas...

2007-12-25T14:28:00.000-08:00

Part I- The movie-
If you read my yesterday's post, you'd have noticed how late my day ended. The Bourne Ultimatum is an absolute thriller! Like I said, I reserved it, knowing that a day would come that I can finally enjoy and appreciate the movie better.

Part II- A Season of Giving-
Baked 3 batches of Banana Croissant, a recipe that I adopted and introduced to my friends here in Kursk. I first saw it on a show of BBC Prime, then thought- hrm... what would happen I baked it with Banana instead, and voila! The recipe of Banana Croissant came to be.

Distributed them to close friends of mine, including Lynn Wei and Johnny. I bought 16 Christmas cards too, from my friends for the charity drive. And there were some pretty mind-blowing designs. Like these ones:

Part III- The Great Mouse Hunt
As reported yesterday, the sanctity of the vicinity that came to be known as Eddy and Teo's room was breached by a mouse. 2 days ago Eddy spotted the measly critter crawling about near the central heating grills in his room. That subsequent night both of them coudln't sleep, hearing the little one biting incessantly, as if teasing them, at papers and plastic bags.

Yesterday during our Christmas shopping we bought some glue which we hoped would trap the mouse, but alas, the cunning one eluded capture! Here you can see Teo placing a trap, some biscuits in a container, surrounded by glue!

During dinner, Choc Ky heard some rustling in the cupboard, which prompted us to do another thorough searching of cupboard area.

Teo has a phobia for rats, and jumped atop his chair before anything else.

But it was an unsuccesful search and eliminate operation. We detected a hole here which he/she might have escaped to, and what seems like rat dung in this area.

Part IV- The Christmas Dinner
After last night's impromptu dinner, I thought perhaps I should make it light tonight (yes- even on Christmas day!). For those who do not know me, my weight fluctuates like a yo-yo. It sometimes take me 2 weeks to gain about 5kg. There was once when I gained 8kg during my summer break, which I all but lost in the subsequent 6 months, only to regain them ALL BACK during the Christmas-new year season, then to lose them off once again.

The only good thing about this is I can look at pictures of myself throughout the year and have a good laugh about it.

Right as I was about to warm up last night's leftovers, Boon Juan appeared! In the season of sharing I asked if he wanted any part of last night's leftovers, some coleslaw and mashed potatoe, somehow from there we decided to have dinner together, and he fried some fish to boot. Ahh... A wonderfully simple yet delightful Christmas meal.

Merry Christmas to all of you!

The Christmas Eve: The Grinch, The Rat, The Missed Christmas Mass and the Santa Claus

2007-12-24T12:17:00.000-08:00

Foreword: In the spirit of C. S. Lewis’ story books this holiday season, I’ll be naming my post after the Wardrobe, the Lion, and the Witch…

24th December, 2007

1am- Woke up groggily, thought- ‘wait a minute, where am I, how come the room’s shrouded in total darkness? Wasn’t I supposed to be studying for my replacement class?’
In an attempt to ‘catch a shut eye’ for a few minutes, I instead dozed off for 3 hours… Oh heck, just sleep on…

8.50 am- Arrived in class, today’s the first day of Gynecology rotation. We’re having the inaptly dubbed Angel-of-Love (her surname’s Angelova) teaching us for this rotation, a known maniacal lecturer who goes crazy at least once every week and threatens to fail all of her students in the class, only to take back her words at the end of rotation when bribed with a box of chocolate.

9.30 am- The love angel left each of us with a sonogram, a temperature chart, an X-ray and a hysterosalpingogram, then disappeared.

10.00 am- Finished the tasks, waited patiently for the angel to return…

10.30 am- Still awaiting patiently for the return of the angel…

11.00 am- This is too much! She’s been gone for at least an hour and a half, maybe she’s forgotten about us?

11.30 am- She returns… After 2 hours. She hasn’t forgotten about us at all!

1 pm- class ends, through a random game of oooo-pet (Malaysian version of Rock-Paper-Scissors), it was decided that I would be the one to bribe her, which I did, with a sweet smile and a ‘Merry Christmas!’ wish and a box of chocolate in my hands, wishing her a happy Merry Christmas and asking her for a holiday for tomorrow (Russian do not celebrate Christmas, meaning that 25th of Christmas by right is a working day- the grinch that is Russia!)

1.05 pm- Excelsior! Success! Holiday Granted!

1.45pm- Reached the city! Went shopping with Teo in the Market for stuffs for tonight’s last minute Christmas Eve dinner plans + mousetrap for the mouse running a-scoundrel in their room, giving both him and eddy (his roommate) one sleepless night.

4.30pm – Start gathering stuffs to cook.

4.45pm – While borrowing a table from the study room on 1st floor, bumped into Bernard. Halt! Thou Shalt go nowhere but to my Christmas eve dinner! He promptly refused, saying how ‘pai seh’ he felt.

4.55pm – Decided to use my hypnotistic power of persuasion. Sent an SMS to Bernard- ‘Thou Shalt come to my Christmas eve dinner’ to which he replied ‘Ok... Fine...’

5pm – Eddy, Bernard and Yew Ching all appeared, in full force, to help peel potatoes, boil spaghettis, fry onions, marinate the chicken, slice the mushrooms, wash the cabbages, etc…

6pm- the time I’m supposed to have dinner, since the Christmas Eve mass was to be held at 8pm. I’m no near to finishing my cooking, what to do???

6.30pm- Eddy’s rushing me- ‘Hurry up! It’s getting late!’

7pm- I just realized, It’s too late by now to get changed to go to the Christmas eve mass… with a sad face (and a sadder heart) I decided to finally not go (again) to this year’s Christmas eve mass in church...

7.15pm- Everybody who's attending the Christmas Eve Mass has left... and I've finised cooking. Oh well! Menu today-

Roasted Chicken, Stuffed with mased potatoe and champignon mushroom

Mashed Potatoe

Champignon mushroom, stuffed with diced boiled eggs

Spaghetti with bolognese gravy

Coleslaw

and for dessert- Pumpkin Pie

Here's us guys celebrating

Here's Yew Ching posing with my Christmas tree, with the dishes on the table

8.30pm- Dinner finished.

9pm- went to Teo's room to check out the traps he laid out for the mouse. Poor thing...
9.15pm- Headed to 1st floor, threw my clothes into the washing machine and set it to wash.

9.30pm- Sandra appeared, asking me to head down to 1st floor for a Christmas carol from the WCCI church. Santa Claus made an appearance!

At least I got to experience some Christmas spirit!
11pm- Eddy came in to my room, confirming my worst fears that the Christmas Eve Mass was a kick-ass one...

11.15pm- Koh Siang, my roommate, return, confirming my worst fear once more that I missed out on one kick-ass Christmas eve mass... Oh my heart!

25th December- Merry Christmas, y'all!

12am- Went over to Sakthis' room for his birthday celebration now. Ate some cake, drank some coke.

12.30am- Boiled a pot of water, had Boon Juan, Benedict and Yew Ching over, to drink some left-over Glutinous Rice Ball (Remainder from yesterday, moulded but unboiled). Tried Boon Juan's suggestion of adding some ginger into the soup, on top of some Pandan Essence and sugar. The mixture of which was really great!

12.45am- Chit Chat in my bedroom while having Glutinous Rice Ball soup.

1am- Finally! Time to Shower!

1.15am- Dry my clothes.

1.30am- My long awaited time for myself- Movie Time. A movie I've reserved for a special occasion- The Bourne Ultimatum. Good Night and a Merry Christmas to all of you!

50th Birthday!

2007-12-22T17:10:00.000-08:00

Fine, I admit it. I have never mastered the art that is ironing. No matter what I do, however much pressure I apply on the iron, however many time I squirt the shirt with water, the cloth stays wrinkled. But anyway, last Sunday was a special ocassion, one that I needed to attempt at ironing again-!

Here's a satin dhoti

And here's me trying it on

To put it on takes skills! You need to hold one end of the cloth, folding it back and forth 4 to 5 times, then slip it through your legs, then repeat it behind you then fold it back forward. The resulting piece is a spectacle to behold- Satin dhoti, a traditional indian attire that's beautiful and unique. But as you can see- It's not flattering on me at all. But luckily my neighbours are multinational, so from Sandhun's (a Sri Lankan) room I headed to Andi's (Sabahan Malay) room and asked to borrow his Sarung.

He suggested this style, which reminisce that of the olden days, of people wearing it in Kampung, especially at the fishing villages. But then at the end he suggested the method of 'Kain pelikat'.

Anyway, the ocassion was Pastor Pamela Norris' birthday. She's a pastor from Texas who know preaches at a Church here in Kursk. She has been a big influence and has had played a huge role in the lives of many a Christian here, so the students of the church decided to throw her a grand 50-th birthday bash.

There were dances, dedications, slide shows as well as presents and well wishes for her.

Including this one of my roommate doing some Wushu display.

The food were great! It was a combination of different food indigenous to different students who are members of the church.

After dinner, there were lots of photo taking. Here's me with my friends and cell group mates.

As you see the dress code of the day was traditional attires. I was the only guy who adorned a Malay attire, complete with Songkok, courtesy of my neighbour. Everybody was asking why I wore jeans under the sarong? YOU THINK??!?! The birthday party was quite a distance from my hostel, and me walking with only sarong in the negative whatever winter temperature? That sounds like a one shot castration to me...

And a huuuuuge group photo, with hundred over students in it. That's me jiggling when this shot was taken.

Happy Birthday Pam!

Kursk- Like A Phoenix Rising From The Ashes? Or Sinking Back Once More To The Depth Of The Oceans...

2007-12-22T14:46:00.000-08:00

Sorry for the abscence of updates in the past week. I was in the midst of a final and had lots of other tasks to attend to. But all's well now.

I was searching the word Kursk on a search engine and found this. It's an article written by a BBC journalist who visited Kursk. A lot of what was mentioned rang true- those who visit the city centre here will have a totally wrong perception. As thick and as elaborate you build a metal chain, it is only as strong as it's weakest link. So as lavish and as luxurious you build the city centre up to be, if the urban and suburbs are still littered with garbage, houses in shambles and different states of disrepair, homeless people wandering around... well, you get the picture.

But anyway, one thing I can't deny is the economic boom we're seeing with our own eyes. When I first arrived in this town, there were barely any shopping malls around. The closest one was at least 15 minute away by bus. Now, there's one a right accross the university, there's one 10 minute on foot away, there's another 2 10 minutes on bus, another probably 6 or 7 in 20 minutes bus ride. And more along the way. At the rate they are going, we'll be seeing more shopping malls then there are in Kuching.

This, for example, is one of them-

This, out of nowhere, was named Sadovaya Plaza. This is the FIRST ever building in Kursk, where the name of the place is not written in Cyrillic alphabets. I'm not exagerrating when I say that more than half of the locals living here do not read latin alphabets. Most likely they'll look up and read- 'Shto? (wha'???)'

As you are reading this right now, more buildings are still being built, either serving as a bank, an office, a multipurpose complex or in the spirit of things- shopping malls!

Weird though- we're still not seeing any MacDonald's sign being hung anywhere in the city. Weird considering that they say you can walk 10 minutes somewhere downtown in Manhattan, New York, and probably pass by 3 MacDonald's store.

I hardly ever eat out nowadays, but Thursday was an exception, we had a finals in the subject of Opthalmology and this restaurant was about 5 minutes away from the hospital where the examination was conducted, called Dacha, meaning cottage in Russian.

They offer this option- to fill a plate with as much food as you like, costing 89rubles (RM12). But there's one catch though, you can only choose from a limited variety of salads. And the raw materials used to cook the salad were- onions, cabbages, beetroot, carrots, potatoes... basically materials that are cheap, and basically a big rip-off. But it was really the choice of this Ripoff or another bigger ripoff (one measly scoop of mashed potatoe, one bowl of measly soup and one piece of meat nugget- also 89 rubles).

Guess you see which ripoff I decided to be ripped by.

Here’s the salad plate that Niny, my classmate filled.

Here’s mine.

Here’s me taking a big munch off of the big ripoff.

Lynn Wei posing for the camera.

And Teo taking a peep at his PDA.

Desert- a slice of Raspberry cake. Another ripoff.

Winter Holiday!

2007-12-15T13:54:00.000-08:00

So this is the time of the year again, to finally make a decision- to embark on yet another European escapade (already my 3rd one) or to stay back and spend my Winter break in the hostel. For those of you who don’t really know me. I will say that traveling would probably be my second passion, after cooking.

For the past couple of months, I was pretty indecisive. Initially I thought that I had only 2 weeks of holidays, which means that once again, in a short time, there’s not really a lot of options of places that I can go to. Then all of a sudden there’s a mad rush over here in Kursk, of students booking flight tickets here and there, to Barcelona, to Berlin, to Prague, to London, the list goes on and on.

I finally thought to myself- hrm… perhaps I should just take it slow this winter break and snuggle under my comforter.

Until this week, when I found out that instead of 2, due to our examination being held early, I have 3 weeks of holiday.

So in the space of 5 days I cooked up a plan, involving a few countries in the east and west Europe that I have still yet been to. And somehow I am extremely positive that my this year’s Backpacking winter tour would be as ass-kickingly awesome as the last one.

But anyway, since I have never posted my previous travel report, here it is, to close off my bog for this week, a brief travel repertoire of my Winter 'Whirlwind' Tour 2006/7.

We started off a group of 9 close-knit friends, taking a train from Kursk to Moscow

We arrived in Moscow at 6 in the morning, to the busy din of a snow blizzard. In fact, we were extremely worried because flights after flights were either delayed or cancelled. But by the grace of God, after a short delay, we took off!

Using Air Berlin, we arrived in Tegel airport where we split into 2 groups, me, Shu Ngie and Eddy heading off to meet our Couchsurfing host, Tom, in his apartment in Friederichstrasse. Berlin was a lot of fun, you can even feel the hype in the air as you walk through the tourist sites; Alexanderplatz, KaDaWe (the second biggest shopping mall in europe), the Brandernburg Tor (Victory Gate), the Victory Column, Charlottenburg Castle, etc. We did lots of shopping and of course, ate lots of Germany's famous Hotdogs!

That night we took an overnight train to Brussels, Belgium, the land of abundant chocolate, fries and Tin Tin. The most symbolic icon of Belgium would be maneken pis, a little statue of a boy pissing into a basin. The story was told that this boy took a piss at a wick which was actually connected to dynamites intended to blast the city of Brussels. His innocent little act saved his city and the townspeople, of course.

By noon, we were already on our way to Amsterdam, the sex capital of Europe. We arrived on a Sunday, and the streets were full with visitors wanting to spend their weekends here. We stopped by a coffeehouse, lit a joint and tasted some space cake.

Next up we took another overnight train, this time stopping by Luzerne, Switzerland. I can tell you from the moment I stepped out from the train station, I fell immediately in love. With the serene Lake Lucerne in the backdrop, surrounded by the rolling alpine peaks, and the whole city itself escaped unscathed during the major wars, meaning that medieval buildings and structures were all intact. And the people? Amazingly friendly! Our host, Martin invited us to Raclette, a meal of melted swiss cheese eaten together with pickles and steamed potatoes.

We also managed to take a steamer to Vitznau and Weggis, where we boarded the oldest steepest steam train on Europe to the Peak of Mount Rigi, the so called Queen of mountain. All and all, Lucerne was a delight and a dream come true for me, and I solemnly vowed to return once more to this picturesque, scenic town.

Next, on our way to Geneva, we paused by Montreux, the Swiss Riviera which contains one of the most popular and best-preserved castle to date, the Chateau de Chillon.

Geneva was our next stop, the smallest metropolitan in the world which is the melting pot for people of different nations, cultures and religions. And for the first time in my life, I got to experience the Swiss meal of Cheese fondue in its entirety. The Kimber Family (one part-Swiss, one part-American, one part-British and all-around wonderful people) were so nice to us we almost didn’t want to leave Geneva.

One Easyjet flight later finds us in Rome, probably one of the most famous cities in the world. Endless sights like the Colosseum, the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill, Pantheon, Pizza Navona, Piazza di Spagna and the Spanish Steps, Fontana de Trevi, Castello San Angelo, and the list goes on and on. And the food? To die for! Pizzas as cheap as 1 euro of every variety you could possibly think of in the world! I thought I had indeed died and went to heaven!

Next stop on the whirlwind Europe Tour was Florence, the capital of Renaissance Art, with its endless museums and galleries in sight.

Pisa was next. Campo dei Miracidio (the fields of miracles), where the leaning tower was at, really lived up to it's name. With the shade of bluish-turquoise shade covering the sky and almost no cloud in sight, the view there was extremely unreal. And of course, nobody can pass on the opportunity to pose with the leaning tower. Here I’m hugging it with dear life, to stop it from toppling over.

Our next stop was Venice. We arrived on the 9th February, which was the Sunday before Carnavale, the festival where everyone dresses up in Venice, and parades on the streets. Lucky for us, we caught a glimpse of what the hype is all about too, cos' already people were colouring the streets in different outfits and costumes, and it was truly a sight to behold. For once in this trip, I tucked the copy of map that I have into my pocket, and walked blindly in the maze that is Venice. Endless twists and turns, little alleys and walkways is where the charm of venice really lies.

Of course, the visit to Piazza San Marco would not be complete without the 'feeding of the pidgeons'. All and all, Venice captured my heart and I have to say this was probably my second favourite city after Lucerne.

Dame Julie Andrew really knows what she meant when she sang 'the hills are alive with the sound of music...'. For in Salzburg, this appears to be true! The hometown of musical genius Mozart is a beautiful little town situated by the side of the Austrian alps. Here Eddy and Shu Ngie are reenacting a scene in the Mirabelle garden (the actual place that the movie was shot), acting as the von trapp family in the movie 'the Sound of Music'.

We then took a train and arrived in Vienna. Christine, our Couchsurfer host, took us out to experience the Viennese culture of Coffeehouse. And this concept of coffeehouse is totally different from that of Amsterdam's! Christine embodies what a couchsurfer really mean- vibrant, helpful, friendly, full of life and so much, so much more. Here were are with Elisabeth, a greek beauty, at a Couchsurfing party.

Our last leg of the tour was Stuttgart, a rising town in southern Germany, famed for its award-winning Mercedes-Benz and Porsche Museums. Needless to say, we slobbered so much while admiring the different car models that by the time we left the museums, we were badly dehydrated.

After 2 weeks in Europe, we got to see, experience, and indulge ourselves in so many new things that I felt like a totally different person when I reached Kursk. The people that I met, the food that I tasted, the stories that I heard, the knowledge that I gained, the friendship that were formed, the sights that I saw, were priceless. And I will not trade them for anything in this world (except maybe another ticket around the world! :p)

Now that I am about to embark on another trip, I can't help but to feel this rush of excitement. A premonition of good things to come?

How about you? How are you going to spend/spending your holidays?

‘Baranina (Mutton), Tiliatina (Beef), Svinina(Pork)!’

2007-12-14T11:55:00.000-08:00

If you take the time to walk through the meat market here in Kursk, you will definitely be hearing the calls of ‘Baranina (Mutton), Tiliatina (Beef), Svinina(Pork)!’, beckoning you to purchase the meat produce of the day.

Anyway, seeing that I bought meself about a kilogram of lamb, 2 thought popped into my mind- Mutton bryani and Mutton Satay, and that was exactly what I did.

I invited Ming and Bernard over, seeing that it was my turn to play host after last week Ming’s Hainanese Chicken Rice and Bernard's Fruit Salad Dinner.

Today’s Menu:
Main Course
Mutton Bryani, cooked with a variety of Indian herbs and spices

Side Dish
Chicken and Mutton Satay, baked to perfection, served with home made satay gravy and chunks of fresh cucumber

Dessert
Vanilla Ice-cream served with freshly-baked Apple Crisp

In future posting I will blog about recipes for the other dishes, but for tonight, I will share the recipes to Chicken and Mutton Satay.

Chicken and Mutton Satay (Sate Ayam dan Kambing)
Ingredients:
2 portions of chicken breast meat, deboned and with skin removed
about 400 grams of lean mutton meat
Honey
satay sticks (soaked for 6 hours)

Marinate A.
tumeric powder
salt and sugar to taste
curry powder
1 stalk of lemongrass (daun serai) crushed
chopped red onions

Marinate B.
tumeric powder
salt and sugar to taste
curry powder
soy sauce
1 stalk of lemongrass (daun serai) crushed
chopped red onions

Instruction
1. Cut chicken and mutton length wise about 2cm thick.

2. Mix Marinate A. into chicken, leave for up to 6 hours.

3. Mix Marinate B. into mutton, leave for 12 hours (or overnight)

4. Hold satay stick in one hand while piercing meat pieces through the sharp tip. Arrange meat into a bundle of about 20 cm in length.

5. Arrange satay sticks on a tray, fill the bottom of the baking tray with water, and bake satay in a preheat oven at 180 degrees.

6. Bake mutton satay for 30 minutes, before taking them out to spread honey evenly over the meat. Put back into oven for another 10 minutes. For chicken satay, spread honey at the 20th minute, and continue baking another 10 minutes.

7. Serve with chunks of cucumber and satay gravy!

Yum!
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Christmas Charity Drive Kursk 2007 - Part 4

2007-12-13T03:11:00.000-08:00

With the days drawing closer and closer to our intended visit to the orphanage (3rd January), I can’t help but to feel a sense of excitement. After my previous post on this Charity Drive (Parts 3, 2, and 1 here) I called up Aleksei, the said Manager of Advertising Department of Evropa Convenient shop, asked about his progress and perhaps any updates regarding their sponsorship of our trip. Using my Russian Prowess (ah-hem!), I asked whether the higher ups agreed to it. He said ‘yes’, to which I immediately leapt with joy!

I felt a huge load lifted from my chest, and I finally can unclench my eye brows. We made an arrangement to visit the said orphanage first, to make a survey on the things that they need most, be it clothes, items, equipments, etc.

Today afternoon, he drove me and Marina to the orphanage. By first view, the place looked like any typical rural Russian establishment. Slightly run down, in need of a sprucing up, maybe some paints. And for a moment I was stuck with this morbid fear, thinking that the condition in there would be worst off that I had imagined.

And yet, upon our entrance- I was slightly taken by surprise. The walls weren’t peeling, the children seem happy, and they had all the basic necessities that they needed. Once more, I breathed a huge sigh of relief. Somehow I had the worst case scenario pictures in my mind.

The caretakers were happy to meet us. In the meeting, we were informed that thanks to contributions from various individuals; the children have enough to wear, to eat and to have. The only thing that they lack would probably be sports items like shoes, racquets, basketballs, volleyballs, footballs, skipping ropes et cetera.

We were later shown the performance hall and gymnasium that they had in the establishment. Small but comfortable.

During that visit itself, Aleksei had brought some clothes that he had collected from various sources, but seeing that they weren’t needed here, he repacked them and will be giving them to another orphanage in another part of the city.

I would describe the visit as extremely productive. The caretakers from the orphanage finally told us that they will all be looking forward to our visit before we bade each other farewell.

On the way back, Marina, me and Aleksei basically had a hearty conversation, about me coming to Russia to study, my life here, before the topic of the conversation shifted to him, Aleksei, the seemingly regal and extremely established manager of one department in a multimillion company. His story blew both me and Marina away.

Apparently, for the past 2 years, he had been collecting unused clothes and other sorts of donation with his own initiative, and presenting them to orphanges around Kursk. It wasn't until recently that someone in the higher ups caught wind of his charitable work, before deciding to chip in and sponsor his visits. It turns out, he himself was raised as an orphan, with no parents and no other means of financial backing, he taught himself whatever he needed to know, and started working odd jobs at a very young age. He now has a comfortable life, a 5-figure (Rubles) paying job, a car, a nice apartment, and he has never forgotten his root, doing whatever he came to repay the kindness to the orphanages where he was raised.

And then came the next question- how old are you?

Turns out, he is 22 this year.

In case you don't know by now, I am 22 this year too. Needless to say, it blew us away. I've read about and heard of many rags to riches stories in my time, this one I must say top them all.

So anyway, the visit to the orphanage wasn't only productive, I gained myself a friend on the way back. I think his story is definitely compelling and thought-provoking enough to deserve a spot in our Christian Newsletter , what do you think?

Anyway, for this upcoming I already had pretty much a power-packed performance figured out. I will be inviting some friends to do some performance during the day itself, an indian dance, a chinese dance, and I remembered one friend who performed ngajat previously, which seems fitting for this event too.

Currently we're still collecting clothes, making christmas cards and so forth to still raise whatever money we can manage. Hopefully this will turn out to be the success that I prayed and hoped it to be.

Public Enemy Number One. Once Again.

2007-12-10T14:16:00.000-08:00

I don't even know where to begin.

I wish to say it doesn't affect me, but it does. Somehow, I always fall in the firing line when it comes time to put the blame on a person. Maybe it's because of my tendency to speak my mind, maybe it's my boisterious personality, but I'd like to think it's because of my receding hairline, that because I've got so little hair left, my forehead disperses light into all direction, inevitably catching people's notice.

Recently, I've been called a rat, a little man, a firy stone (literal translation from the Malay word- Batu Api), an instigator, a girl-bully and so many many more. People are quick to pass a judgement. When they have a theory on what is going on, they gather together and whisper and put the blame on a person. When the matter was cleared up, instead of apologizing for having accused the person wrongly, they just act as though all is well and move on. Without a care of the person whom they gossiped aout. And of course, by then rumours would have already spread to regions far and wide...

Recently a close friend encountered some problems, approached me and told me what he was feeling. Thinking that I should be a good friend especially in his time of needs, I consoled him, assured him, saying he has my support, and the support of many more in every decision that he makes.

When finally he made a decision, somehow people think that I manipulated my way, and somehow bore a presence into his brain and every single decision he made.

Next, the same friend called me up to his room a few days later. He sounded urgent. And upon reaching his room I found another friend crying. I passed her tissue papers, gave her a cup of water to drink, patted her back, gave her some consoling and supporting words, like any friends would. Then convinced her that even if no one does, I believe in her. And I swear by my life that I do.

Then she went back to her room, and somehow people think I was the one who made her cry.

Then suddenly a deragatory and demeaning comment was made on a friend's blog, raising some sensitive issue. Lucky for me, I was busy the whole night running up and down in the hostel looking for dancers, a friend was with me the whole time, and could easily vouch for my whereabouts. And the fact that I share one internet cable with my roommate who had the internet cable to himself the whole night (playing CS with some other friends). And, of course, I have no other means of internet access, my nokia handphone doesn't even have bluetooth function, what more to say GPRS?

But then, the damage was done. EVERYONE conjured up the idea that I had the galls to use a pseudonym, post an offending remark and left someone else to be blamed. An act which I myself am disgusted by. Of course, by then people have already spread their theories. When the evidence was presented to them, what do they do? Nothing.

So there you go, once more I am the scape goat. But once again, lucky for me, years of eating sand in the sandbox in kindergarden made my skin thick enough to endure the onsloughts of attacks. Waves and waves of them.

Bristol: It's the constant and determined effort that breaks down all resistance and sweeps away all obstacles.

Babe Ruth: It's hard to beat a person who never gives up.

Japanese Proverb: Fall seven times, stand up eight.

Aaliyah: If at first you don't succeed, dust yourself off and try again, you can dust it off and try again

I really didn't even want to post this up in my blog. I thought it wasn't even necessary. But 3 strikes in less than a week? I think finally the time is ripe for this-

If only they saw how much effort I put, how much time I spent, how many calls I made, how many people I've approached, how many sms-ses I sent, how many hours I spent on this when I could have just given up and STUDIED for my upcoming Opthalmology exam, and how deep my head is into making this a success, then maybe they will just leave me alone and let me do my job?

Leave me alone. Please?

"the face everybody love to hate"

Christmas Charity Drive Kursk 2007 - Part 3

2007-12-09T13:50:00.000-08:00

A month into our charity drive (Parts 1 and 2 here), we are still trying our best to do whatever we can to make sure this drive ends up a success.

We only have a few weeks left before the day of our orphanage visit. Like I said, when we found out last week that there were FIFTY orphans in the orphanage, I was sent into somewhat of a mini panic attack. The next day, I rang up Marina, an acquaintance here in Kursk, to help me get hold of some sponsors.

We headed to Evropa(Picture courtesy of Johnny), a very successful convenient store in town which has approximately 20 brances situated in different areas of the town. I didn't know what to expect, and just prayed that something would come out of this meeting.

We were whisked off to a heavily-secured back area, where the main office of the bulding was located. There, we were asked to wait for the assitant, who then refered us to a guy, Aleksei, who apparently was in-charged of the charity department of Evropa Department Store. For the love of God I never knew that Evropa would have a department tending to just charity works. But they did. The meeting was productive, Aleksei said they have frequent visits to one of the orphanage, where they distribute gifts amongst other things. He was happy that foreign students would initiate something like this for the children of Kursk. He promised to call back but...

That was one week ago. Still no phone calls from him. You can detect a slight panic in my tone now. I, for one, am a firm believer that you should always trust people unless proven otherwise. I still believe that this deal will work, and tomorrow we're meeting him again to finalize the sponsorship plans. If not, I may just need to approach another department store, then another one, then another one, until finally a door opens up.

But anyway, enough with that. Even if we did have that sponsorship, we will not and could not have just threw away all our efforts, so we sold more cookies!

Ever thought of what goes into preparing and baking butter cookies?

I really can't thank Eddy, Danielle and Yew Ching enough for their help. If it wasn't for them, I could have spent 10 more hours and still not be done with the kneading, the molding, the baking, the packaging and et cetera. From 830pm we started, paused a while at 12am to celebrate Yew Ching's birthday in my room, then continued baking some more. At the end, we managed to conjure up 26 packets of Butter cookies, sold at 15 rubles each packet (containing 12 cookies).

I didn't think that anybody would remember, what more to say request for more of my cookies. But people did. Already on wednesday I received a SMS asking wether I would be selling cookies this weekend, and by Saturday, 3 different students had done the same thing.

And then, after church mass, we sold the cookies- and yet again we sold off all 26 packets in minutes.

So far, we've collected from sales:
Burgers and Pizzas - 700 rubles
Cookies week 1 - 300 rubles
cookies week 2 - 400 rubles
Jane's Barbershop - 650 rubles
Collection during student's mass - 400 rubles

Total: - 2450 rubles, or RM340.

Next week, we'll be working twice as hard, selling not only cookies, but also hand-made christmas cards. Stay tuned!

The Great Escape

2007-12-09T12:58:00.000-08:00

After a week of intense drama (not unlike that of your typical drama scenes from OC or One Tree Hill or Dawson's Creek) in the hostel, when Ming invited me over to his apartment for dinner and to spend a night, I couldn't say 'YES' soon enough.

The night before (Thursday), he was just lingering around my hostel, so I invited him to a dinner of Bak Kut Teh, Chai Poh Egg Omelet and Chinese Cabbage Fried with abalone mushroom (no pictures taken, sorry!).

The next night, on the menu were Ming's Hainanese Chicken Rice with Grilled Chicken, White Carrot soup and Bernard also brought along Fruit salad for dessert

Althought I take pride in my cooking, I must say that Ming's hainanese Chicken Rice beats me hands down. Bernard's Fruit salad was also a winner. He used dices, bananas, pears and apples, with a hefty serving mayonnaise as dressing. Quite a potent combination.

After dinner, both Ming and Bernard took out their guitars and jammed! And whichever song I knew about, I sang to my heart's content! Somehow it felt better, more surreal than say singing to a TV screen in any Red-Box karaoke parlour.

Ming, never one to pass a chance to photograph, finally got down to it- and striked a Van Damme pose.

A great escape, indeed.

Klang-style Bak Kut Teh

2007-12-04T14:55:00.001-08:00

Last summer right before I got back to Russia, during my stop over in KL, Bernard's dad drove us ALL the way to Klang from downtown KL to have a taste of their world-famous Bak Kut Teh (translated as Meat Bone Tea, but actually meaning Pork Rib Tea). All this while I thought that, you know, maybe the myth about Klang Bak Kut Teh was overrated, but having tasted it, I must say I've become addicted to it!

Before leaving Klang, I dropped by a local Chinese Herbal store to buy me a few packets of their original Bak Kut Teh, of specially composed remedies of different kinds of herbs and spices.

Seeing that I managed to buy a beautiful chunk of pork rib, with minimal fat and just fresh fresh meat all around, I invited Benny and Sandra to have dinner with me, for a dinner of my own recreation of Klang's Bak Kut Teh.

Ingredients:
1 kg of pork meat
chinese mushroom, soaked
1 packet of Bak Kut Teh spice
Dark Soy sauce
Salt
Pepper
MonoSodium Glutamate (MSG)
Chinese Cabbage

1. Boil water in a pot over high heat.

2. Insert the prepared herbs into a satchet and insert into pot and let it boil for 10 minutes with lid covered.

3. Enter pork into pot and let boil for 15 minutes.

4. Remove lid after 15 minutes, add in 3 table spoon of dark soy sauce, enough salt, pepper and MSG to taste.

5. Cover lid and allow to boil over slow flame for the next 45 minutes.

6. Stir in chinese cabbage and allow to boil for 2-3 minutes.

7. Remove pot from stove and serve with a bowl of hot rice.

Given it didn't taste as perfectly as the one I tasted in Klang, I thought it was not bad at all. Definitely a long shot from when I cook using a premade spice, the ones they sell in convenient stores. During the boiling itself, the aroma was incredible. My neighbour living in a different unit had actually came over to check out what the smell was about.

Notice the satchet? My mum made me that for me to sift through the soy milk from its dregs. Seems like it comes in handy this time!

Christmas Tree

2007-12-02T14:36:00.000-08:00

Like I said, the reason I couldn't update my blog in a long time was due to some commitment I've made- as a newsletter editor, as a co-advisor to an up coming Chinese New Year Concert, as an organiser to a Charity Drive and as a 5th year medical student. And I guess I finally realized I have to draw the line somewhere.

Everyone who knows me know that I love to sing. I may not have the best voice, but gosh throw me a karaoke box and some Cd's and you won't be able to move me an inch. And Christmas Caroling was something I've been wanting to do in a long time. But in the midst of me baking pizzas and making burgers one week, then baking cookies the next, I've missed practises after practises, and finally came to a conclusion- I simply cannot do all of the said things without having to split my body into quarters.

So sadly, I decided to quit Caroling...

The sad realization hit me hard. So I decided to pick my spirits up by doing what I do best in the first week of December- decorating my Christmas Tree.

I bought the tree exactly 3 years ago for 900 rubles, around RM120. It comes equipped with Fibreoptic lighting. There are these fibreoptic filaments sticking out which changes colour every second.

It flickers from Green to yellow to purple, where it pauses and remains purple for a full second, then flickers back to red and orange and green and blue. The it goes back to green and yellow and the cycle repeats itself. Pretty mesmerizing. One of these days I'll take a play be play picture of my Christmas tree and upload it here.

While decorating, I put in a movie, Dennis Quaid and Rene Russo's Yours, Mine and Ours, into the DVD player. Right as I was just finishing with the silver star atop the tree, Benny came in, wanting to borrow a movie.

Then a second later, Eddy came in, just wanted to drop by to chill.

Then a second later, Sandra dropped in, looking for Benny.

And last but not least, Choc Ky dropped by my room returning our shared Vacuum Cleaner.

That's camera-shy Sandra hiding from the camera.

Somehow it turned into an impromptu movie night. And Yours, Mine and Ours is totally is family-movie, best to be watched with your make-shift family.

Now if only we had a bowl of my home-made popcorns, it would have been perfect.

A visit from Orel (Oryol), Russia

2007-12-02T14:13:00.000-08:00

Last sunday, we had our student mass. Normally every mass are conducted in Russian, but once every month, we have a student mass, where everything except the Sermon are in English. Our Parish Priest, father John from Poland, speaks very little English, therefore the sermons are still conducted in Russia.

However, last Sunday was an exception- we had a Priest, Father Peter, visit us from Orel, Russia!

Father Peter originates from Nigeria, he used to be a student in St. Petersburg, but return to serve as a Priest here in Russia. And I guess God really answered my prayers! Because he heard about a group of English-speaking students in our town and decided to drop by to conduct a mass in English- sermons, hymms, prayers, everything! And having not heard a sermon in english uttered for 3 whole months- my ears were as attentive as a hunting dog's. Not a single sentence escaped me.

All and all it was a very very blessed mass.

After the mass ended, we went to the Parish home and had a hearty conversation with him. He was absolutely delightful. All his experiences, from back home in Nigeria to here in Kursk, were remarkable. He himself mentioned that for the longest time he had wanted to conduct a mass in English, but back in Orel, the students speak a mixture of English, Portugal, French, Spanish and some other languages, that he had no choice but to conduct masses in Russian, kind of like a lungua franca. And us- we've been wanting to have a mass FULLY conducted in English- it was like a match made in heaven (Excuse the pun).

And though it didn't seem like it- he had the funniest jokes I've heard in a long time. When he started working in Russia, he was at first stationed in a town in the northern part of Russia, close to St. Petersburg called Pskov. It's a little secluded town without much influences from the outside world. And when he first arrived there, he was the first and only Black man.

Once a woman approached him and asked gustily, 'My, can you explain why you are so DARK?'

He answered earnestly, 'Maybe it's because I love eating Chocolate so much'.

To which the woman screamed, saying 'MAMA! I will NEVER ever eat another piece of Chocolate in my whole life'.

And during the whole time, he kept a straight face while telling the joke! We, of course, burst out laughing.

All too soon, it was time for him to catch his train back to his town. He extended his invitation for us to visit him in Orel. We, in return, invited him to visit us more often here in Kursk!

Christmas Charity Drive Kursk 2007 - An Update

2007-12-02T13:53:00.000-08:00

Sorry I didn't update my blog in such a long time. The whole week was pretty busy for me, what's with the charity drive, with my work as a newsletter editor for the newly formed Student Body, as a advisor in our up-and-coming Chinese New Year concert, and lastly, as a student.

But back to the charity drive. For those of you who still doesn't know, a few of us Catholic students here in Kursk decided to organize a trip to the orphanage during our coming holiday, near January, which coincides with the Russian Orthodox Christmas (7th January). Somehow I thought that for once, I want my Christmas to be meaningful, and nothing beats that than to throw together a Charity Drive for the orphans in Kursk.

So last weekend, a few friends and I decided to make cookies for sales! It was hard work- what's with the kneading and pressing and rolling and baking and wrapping- took us nearly 4 hours to bake about 15 batches of cookies.

And they were delicious, crispy and crunchy. sold for 15 rubles (RM2) for 12 pieces. We managed to sell out in minutes and there were still some people who didn't manage to get any.

In another hostel, some friends decided to sell Christmas cards, seeing that Christmas is less than a month away.

Their creativity blew me away. The best thing was that it was hand-made. Meticulously pieced together. I myself reserved about a dozen of those cards!

After 3 weeks, from selling cookies, cutting hair, selling pizzas and burgers and through donation in church, we've managed to collect 2000 rubles, around RM270. And it wasn't until this past Wednesday that we found out- there are 50 orphans in the orphanage. 2000 rubles is definitely not going to be enough to be distributed amongst 50 orphans!

It all seems pretty bleak now. We plan to throw a really memorable Christmas Celebration but it seems like financially, we are currently unable to do much. But I believe where there is a will, there is a way. Tomorrow, I will be approaching a local Department Store owner, and possibly ask for a donation of toys, stationaries, maybe some food and tid bits for the children. I pray that that works out right. If not, I will have to work my a** off next week selling twice as much cookies, burgers and pizzas...